


Seeing is believing

by feminabeata



Category: Infinite (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Harry Potter Setting, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-08-05
Updated: 2014-10-06
Packaged: 2018-02-10 19:22:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 56,479
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2036955
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/feminabeata/pseuds/feminabeata
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Magic is real. And so is love.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. It does not do well to dwell on dreams and forget to live, remember that.

**Author's Note:**

> ( Just barely) Harry Potter AU for an anon.  
> ...  
> I'm sorry that things turned out this way. I more or less paralleled INFINITE with some characters from the books.

"Petrificus Totalus!" a young boy yelled with round glasses and a small lightning bolt scar painted in the middle of his forehead. He was waving a stick furiously at another, slightly bigger boy across from him. The other boy did nothing but stand there, crossing his arms over his chest, glancing away. The smaller boy stood up straight. "Hey! Why aren't you freezing?" he whined.

"Because magic isn't real, you nerd," the taller boy sneered as he snapped his own stick in his hand, breaking it so easily like it didn’t matter. The other gasped in shock, his mouth hanging open. "I'm sick of playing pretend, Woohyun," he threw the broken twigs at Woohyun's feet. "I'm going to go play soccer with Jonghyun and the others."

Woohyun crouched down as he gathered up the pieces gingerly, as if it was a wounded animal.  His eyes then fixed onto his friend’s feet, which were impatiently tapping onto the grass, matting it down. "You used to love playing like this, Kibum," Woohyun grumbled and stood back up.

" _Used to_ ," Kibum emphasized with a great roll of his eyes. "I grew up, and you should too." He walked over and took the round glasses off of Woohyun's face, snapping them in half. "I'm doing you a favor," Kibum insisted, placing the broken frames into his friend's hands. "Magic isn't real." He repeated, patting the other on the back as he walked towards the soccer field.

Woohyun then slumped into the grass, gazing helplessly at his broken toys. It was like he was seeing his childhood being shattered in front of his very eyes. But he didn't want to give up on it yet, clutching tightly onto the frames. No, he wasn't willing to let go. He tried in vain to attach the two pieces together. The black plastic just slid against each other, refusing to meld back together. Pathetic  and frustrated whimpers fell from Woohyun’s lips. His vision became blurry from his lack of lens and also from the tears welling in his eyes. The tears only seemed to prove to him that he _was_ just a child, crying over toys, which only made him even more frustrated.

 _Kibum is right. I'm 12. I_ _’_ _m too old for this. This is just pretend, isn_ _’_ _t? Something that kids do. And I didn't get my acceptance letter. Well I did, but it was all wrong. Dumbledore's name was spelled completely wrong. It was a fake. Just like this._  He took his own stick, still intact, and threw it.

"Owie!"

Woohyun jumped up and rushed over to the elderly man he just hit with his missle of a wand. "Ahjussi, are you okay? I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to," apologies spilled from his tongue. He scanned the man's face, looking for any signs of blood or lacerations.

The seemingly old man removed his hands from his face, revealing a long silver beard to match his silver hair, but his eyes and face looked young, twinkling with delight and not a wrinkle in sight. "It's okay. But I'm not old enough to be called Ahjussi just yet. That hurts more than the wand," he joked. He put his hands into his olive green trench coat pockets and teetered back and forth on his heels. With his finger, he brushed the long silver fringe from his eyes.

"But..." Woohyun was going to comment on the other's hair (which now looks obviously dyed because it was too perfectly silver), but something else came into his mind. He clutched the twig in his hands."You, you knew that this was a wand?" he stuttered showing the fractured branch to the strange man.

"Of course! Every wizard needs a wand," the elder took a long wand out of his trench coat pocket. It was almost a foot long, with an intricate ivy pattern climbing up its length. And somehow, it seemed to suit the odd man, who was now bending over to pick up the broken glasses. Holding the black frames in his hands, he brought his wand to touch them. "And every boy needs to see...oculis repairo," he spoke, and with a flourish of his wand, the frame fused back together perfectly. He then placed them back onto Woohyun's face, resting them on his ears. "There, much better...oh!" he gasped as he parted Woohyun's hair with his forefinger and traced the drawn on scar with his thumb. He giggled gleefully, "Nice scar. I knew somebody with a scar like that once. His name was something odd like…Hoary…Flowers. Yea that’s it! Hoary Flowers! You look just like him!" And Woohyun just stood there, frozen with his mouth gaping. The bearded man closed his jaw with a light tap and sighed as he looked up into the sky. "I'd love to stay and chat, but the wargles are awful today. Nasty little things. Invisible to the naked eye, unless you have these," he put on rose tinted sunglasses from his pockets. “Good thing they’re fashionable, right? I wish I had two, so you could help me. The buggers stole my keys. Oh well, maybe next time,” he mused as he jogged off to chase the invisible creatures. "Come back here, you slimey bastard! Give me back my key!"

Woohyun sat there, watching the man run off into the distance with his long beard trailing behind him like a tail. He zigzagged across the open field, following the invisible creature, flicking his wand in random directions which sent tiny green sparks into the air.

"M-magic  _is_  real."

* * *

 "Why hello, Sunggyu-goon!" A friendly but bristling voice greeted. "What brings you here?"

Sunggyu sighed as be rubbed the head of the eagle statue that just spoke to him. "I'm just here to talk to the professor, Sam."

The stone bird leaned into Sunggyu's touch and squawked, "He's been expecting you."

Sunggyu scoffed and removed his hand from the statue, placing them deep within his pants pockets. They turned into tight fists. He smiled, but his teeth were clenched. "Yea, he always does, doesn't he?" But the eagle did not respond and stiffened, returning back to its rigid stone form, and the wall behind it began to turn, revealing the ornate and hidden office. Sunggyu stepped tentatively inside, each step landing softly onto the wooden floor. His eyes scanned the large oval room, searching for its owner who appeared to be missing. Sunggyu wasn't surprised. The old bastard was always quite hard to find. He was small, flexible, and enjoyed hiding in tight compact spaces to surprise his guests. It was honestly a miracle that the geezer was appointed to be the headmaster of this institution. Sunggyu wouldn't even trust him with a goldfish...again (he did once, and upon his return he found that the goldfish had been transfigured into a golden flower, floating on top of the water. Apparently the old man found this more serene, and he had been annoyed with all the bubbling/breathing the fish had been doing. And Sunggyu had never really forgiven him for what he did to Goldie). Sunggyu's eyes fell on a stack of books in the corner of the room, laying next to bookshelf; however, the books seemed to be moving ever-so-slightly, just a quiver, but enough for his sharp eyes to take notice. "Professor, I can see you," he couldn't hide the slight annoyance in his voice. He had lost his patience with the headmaster years ago.

A high-pitched giggle ripped through the room. The stack of books quickly revealed itself to be just a camouflaged shroud as the headmaster tore it from his body and threw it across the room with a extravagant flourish. After appearing in plain sight in his entirety, the headmaster made a gesture with his hands and bowed as if he accomplished some great magic trick (which might be farthest from the truth. Even first years could do more advanced magic). Regardless of his lack of interest, Sunggyu still clapped out of respect for the old man. Of course, the applause was disingenuous, but the smile on the headmaster's face was still as bright as the sun. "Gyu-goon," he finally greeted after standing back up again. "To what do I owe this pleasure? Come. Let's sit down. Follow me." Words were flowing from his mouth like a cascading waterfall as he led Sunggyu over to his desk. "Would you like a sweet? I think I have some candy stashed here somewhere. I have some taffy, jelly slugs, chocolate-" he was spewing as his head was deep into a drawer of his desk.

"No, Professor. I'm just fine. Actually, I wanted to talk about-"

"No candy. Okay!" the headmaster retreated from his drawer and interrupted the other. "You must be watching your weight. You look a lot thinner then when you were a boy here." He then let out a sad sigh, cradling one of his cheeks with his hands. "I'm going to miss pinching those cheeks. They were like little pillows on your face. Squish. Squish." He poked at Sunggyu's cheek, and his eyes gazed off into the distance, recalling the past. Sunggyu gently removed the elder's hand from his scowling face and tried his best to rein in his bubbling temper. His fuse was shortening by the second. He was about to speak again, but the headmaster once again robbed him of the opportunity. "Speaking of candy, I've been told that my new hair color looks like fairy floss. You want a taste," he joked, presenting his lengthy and pastel pink dyed beard to the grumpy man across from him. The headmaster giggled at the other's frown and tucked his beard back behind his desk. "Maybe some other time, hm?"

"Professor Jang," Sunggyu practically growled. His short fuse was lit and quickly approaching detonation. "Can we please talk about my application?"

The smile fled from the old man's face, and it suddenly became clear that all of his actions leading up to this moment were to distract the other from asking this question. The guilt was evident in his eyes. He looked like a child with his hand caught in the cookie jar. Professor Jang twiddled his long thumbs as his gaze dropped to the floor. "Ah, about the rejection. Yes, yes," he mumbled.

"What was it? Was I not qualified enough? Am I not old enough? How I look? Was it my...family history? Would it scare the kids?" Sunggyu hypothesized, but the headmaster shook his pink head at all of the questions. The professor's thick lips were hidden behind his whiskers, locking up the answer behind them. The fuse was entirely used up, and his temper exploded. "Then what the Hell was it?! I'm sick of asking. Just be straight with me for once, Professor!" he shouted, causing the other to jump a bit at the sudden outburst.

After recovering, the old man straightened up in his seat. The jovial air about him dissipated. A small but serious frown appeared. And everything about them seemed to grow heavier and darker to match the new tone. Even the portraits of former headmasters were glaring at Sunggyu sternly as if they all wanted to lecture and reprimand him. Sunggyu tried to swallow the lump quickly forming in his throat.

"If we were looking for a potions' master solely based on skill, Sunggyu, you would be our top candidate," Professor Jang's voice was dry and severe. He now longer resembled a bright and happy sun, but the scorching rays of the desert sun. Every word was being burned into Sunggyu's mind. "But this is a school, not the Ministry. Having the skill is not enough, educating the younger generations just about potions is not enough. Here, we don't just teach the students magic. We teach them about life. The problem lied not within your skillset or your ability to teach effectively, but within your goals in life. When I asked you about your main goal in life, how did you respond?"

"That I wanted to make the Philosopher's Stone," Sunggyu answered. His brows furrowed in confusion. "But, Professor, I've had that dream since I was a student, and you told me it was a good and admirable one. You told me to keep dreaming big."

Professor Jang nodded and folded his hands onto the desk in front of him. "Ah yes, but that was to prompt you to take your studies seriously. And when we are younger, we can all afford to have lofty dreams. But once we grow older, we must learn to cut ties with the damaging dreams, and let them float off into the airs, abandoning them for better ones."

"But, sir, the Philosopher's Stone is the end goal of Alchemy. It's the pinnacle of my career," Sunggyu argued, leaning forward.

"Not all peaks are meant to be surmounted," the professor retorted, tapping his fingers on the desk restlessly. His other hand began to comb through the pink waves of his beard. He then shook his head, his eyes glazing over again as they searched through his mind's eye. "You know, the Stone was really not such a wonderful thing. As much money and life as you could want! The two things most human beings would choose above all — the trouble is, humans do have a knack of choosing precisely those things that are worst for them," he mused. His eyes then returned back to their usual sparkle and fixed upon Sunggyu's blank face. "It doesn't bode well to teach our students to pursue such empty things."

Empty things, if these things were considered empty, then Sunggyu's life was empty as well. For the Stone represented the two things in his life that he desperately lacked: time and money. If he only had those two crucial things, then he could pursue those things that the headmaster would consider to be 'better dreams.' He could even cure the common cold which plagued muggles and magical folk alike. But all of that took time extraordinary amounts of time and money. So was it really such a damaging goal if it was for the benefit of mankind?

But what the hopeful potions' master didn't realize was that his pursuit was slowly consuming his entire life. His skin has always been on the paler side, but the years spent with the cauldron's fire as his only source of light led him to have a sickly gray complexion. His social skills have also diminished significantly. He found the idea of dealing with children everyday annoying. But he needed the job for the benefits that came along with it: a large store of fodder for his potions, a library full of rare books for his research, and a decent paycheck. Alright, so he didn't apply for the job with the best intentions. Maybe his rejection was only fitting. But Sunggyu wasn't able to give up on his dream so readily, no matter how much the headmaster disapproved of it.

"Professor, this rejection won't stop me. I will keep applying until I get accepted. It may take years or even decades, but I will become a ghost haunting you relentlessly until you say yes, or you die. Whatever comes first," Sunggyu threatened with a grave face.

"Hehe," a short giggle broke out from Professor Jang. A smiled cracked across his stoney face. Sunggyu narrowed his eyes. His threat was treated so lightly. "You were always one of the more...tenacious students, Gyu-goon." A few more laughs fell from his grinning lips. "I look forward to your challenge, but be forewarned: I don't give in so easily either. Not even to your cute cheeks. Squish!" He poked at Sunggyu's cheek again. His laughter grew louder and happier at the sensation. Sunggyu slapped his hand away with more force this time, but it didn't seem to affect the old man who seemed to gaze at him more gently than before. "Gyu-goon, you know that you can come to me for anything, anything at all, even if it's just for free sweets. My door is always open, and I'd hate that our only encounters to be so business-like. Yuck!" he exclaimed with a slight shiver, finally bringing a small smile to the other's face, which only made the professor drifted into another round of melancholy. "You've changed so much since you graduated."

"That's because I grew up, professor. I suggest you do it sometime as well," Sunggyu teased the headmaster, who just nodded in response. Sunggyu then stood up from his chair and bowed to the other. "Excuse me, professor. But I have to return to my shop now. Have a good day," he wished as he walked out of the office with a purpose.

Professor Jang waved goodbye to the young man and sighed as he watched the door slam behind him, sending a large thud resounding in the office. The headmaster then stood up carefully and slowly. His joints were groaning with old age (and he was too). He walked up to a fishbowl hidden in the corner of his office with a golden flower floating on the surface of the water. He pulled a bottle from his robes, popped the cap, and sprinkled some of its flakes into the water. The flower then folded onto itself, transforming into an angular but brilliant gold fish. "Cheeky boy, isn't he, Goldie?" he asked as his fingertips caressed the glass where the fish was. "He has really changed. Not as fun as he used to be. He didn't say anything about my new hair color, and that's just plain rude." He twirled his beard around his fingers, now really resembling cotton candy. It soon got tangled in the long locks, and he tried to pull it out. While he was tugging, he kept talking distractedly to his fishy companion, "If he keeps going after the Stone, it won't be good. No it won't. He'll lose sight of what's important like...Aha! Got it out!" he cheered triumphantly, showing his newly liberated finger to Goldie. He then turned to look back at the closed office door and shook his head.

"The boy's got some more growing up to do."

* * *

12 years, it had been 12 years since Woohyun had encountered that strange and eccentric man with the silver beard, 12 years since he had told Kibum about the wizard and his friend told him to stop lying. He was ridiculed by his schoolmates for being a child, still believing that magic and Santa Clause existed (which he then learned wasn't real at the same time). His childhood naivete was shattered right then, along with his glasses which were broken by Kibum again at the prompting of his new 'cool' friends (Kibum apologized profusely afterwards, and the two remained close friends even to this day).

What he had learned that year wasn't that his eyes had fooled him or that he was imaging things, contrary to what Kibum and his parents said, but that people won't accept your word as truth without hard evidence, without seeing it with their own eyes. So he tried his best to hide it, shove it into the deep recesses of his memory. He never mentioned or spoke about it again.

But that didn't mean he ever stopped believing in magic or stopped from reading and rereading the book series that lead him down this path. He would just read in secret, which wasn't hard when you are alone for most of the day. Woohyun didn't come from the richest family. His parents worked all day at the restaurant below their small apartment, an establishment which barely fit 6 tables inside, but it was their only source of income. And as for friends, after the wizard incident he became ostracized for the remainder of grade school. Outside of Kibum, he hardly had any other friends. The rest of his classmates thought he was weird or delusional. He later shattered that image in high school when he finally ditched the round glasses for contacts and joined the soccer team. Then Woohyun became popular and well liked by his classmates like he was before, but the damage was already done. If those people had turned their backs on him so easily before, what would stop them from doing it again? It was like he could see the storm clouds of loneliness rolling over the horizon, and he was just waiting for them to cast their gloom over him.

So he did the only thing he could to protect himself from the oncoming storm. He found his umbrella: he took care of those around him very well, making himself appear vital to their existence. Which leads us to this moment. He was working alongside his parents at the restaurant, like filial son and future successor to the business. However, the years of relentless work had already taken a toll on them, especially his mother. Her arthritis was getting so bad that her joints were abnormally swollen and were almost immobile. Woohyun stomach felt heavy with guilt every time he saw his mother's hands. No woman her age should have hands that knobby and calloused. So he was going to cure them. 

He had overheard the ahjummahs while they were dining, talking about a local apothecary, which had exceptionally effective salves and herbal medicine. He immediately asked for directions to the shop, and that's how he ended up in the dodgy part of town, standing in front of a rundown shop with the 'A' in 'Apothecary' hanging upside down, holding on by a single nail. "Original," Woohyun scoffed at the name. His eyes nervously scanned the surroundings, and he wondered how the ahjummahs managed to come down here. The area wasn't exactly the safest, which only meant the its wares were worth the risk. Woohyun took in a deep breath. If those old ladies could do it, then he could too. He barged into the shop expecting, well, some creepy and decrepit man, almost like a mummy, with a scratchy voice and a lazy eye. A look that would match the outside of the shop. But Woohyun let out a laugh (of relief) when he saw the owner.

A pale faced boy, with his elbows propped against the counter, lazily stirring the black pot in front of him. His black hair was closely shaved at both sides, and he had two odd piercings on the middle of his right ear. But all of the tough dress could not mask his natural softness. He was puffing his cheeks and pouting in frustration. But then the owner immediately perked up at the sound of Woohyun's sharp laughter, obviously startled. But like with his looks, he tried to hide it. He turned the sudden jerk of his head into a casual nod. "Hey."

"Hey," Woohyun greeted in response. "Where's the arthritis medicine?"

The owner looked back down at his pot and nodded his head to the right. "Mu-eh-medicinal stuff is over there," he answered distractedly as he began stirring again.

 _Some help he is_. Woohyun scoffed. He wandered over to the exact opposite side of the shop to which the owner directed. The more interesting items seemed to be over there. There were the usual lotions, liquids, and flakes. But there were also jars full of colorful smokes, live insects, and...were those eyeballs. Woohyun picked up one jar to study it more closely. As he turned it, the eyeballs appeared to be following him. He gagged, but then his eyes fell on the label. "Hey, is this really 'eye of newt'?" Woohyun asked with a nervous giggle.

"Novelty item," the owner answered quickly. He glanced up from the pot again, narrowing his eyes. "Medicinal stuff is on the other side," he said darkly. Woohyun giggled, feigning innocence, put down the jar, and walked over to the other side. The owner's sharp eyes followed him closely. Woohyun could feel his gaze burning his skin.

Within a few minutes, Woohyun found the salve and found himself feeling very uncomfortable in the shop. The silence was oppressing, and the owner’s burning gaze had not left his back. Woohyun’s skin felt like it was on fire. He hadn’t done anything wrong, but he felt like a criminal. He was a customer. The owner should like him just based on that. After working in the service industry for years, Woohyun knew a thing or two about how to treat a customer. And this wasn’t it.

Woohyun set down the jar onto the check-out counter with more force than necessary. “I’ll just take this,” he said in the rudest voice he could muster (which still wasn’t that rude because his lips were wanting to twitch upwards into his usual smile). “And I’ll be on my way.”

The owner slid the jar closer to him and looked at the label. He glanced upwards towards the other with an eyebrow cocked. “This is pretty expensive. Do you have enough money?” he challenged. Woohyun’s suspicions were confirmed. The owner had _absolutely_ no idea how to deal with customers.

Woohyun smirked reached deep into his pocket. He pulled out a handful of bills and placed them on the countertop. “Is this enough?” he retorted. Yes, the medicine was a significant cut of his paycheck, but his mother's health was well worth it. The rude owner didn't need to know that though. Never.

The owner avoided Woohyun’s gaze and picked out a few bills from the pile. Turns out that Woohyun had more than enough. While the other was ringing him up, Woohyun peered into the precious black pot. It looked like some weird broth. _Figures. It’s his lunch_. Woohyun then recalled the owner just stirring it with an almost disgusted look on his face. Woohyun sniffed it and immediately pulled back, retching. He wouldn’t want to eat it either. And just because the owner was a jerk to him, didn’t mean that Woohyun had to be a jerk back. “Your soup looks like it could use some more seasoning,” Woohyun critiqued now scanning the array of herbs littering the countertop. He grabbed a small dish of dried green leaves. “Basil, perfect. Here you go!” he said cheerfully as he dumped the entire contents of the dish into the broth. The owner looked up at him dumbfounded. “I work at a restaurant, so I picked up a thing or two,” he explained.

The soup then began to bubble and smoke. It was changing colors before their eyes. “What the Hell did you do?” the owner yelled, grabbing for his ladle and stirring the concoction furiously. “That wasn’t basil, you idiot! You ruined everything!” He threw down the spoon in defeat after the smoke grew heavier and dark in color. He brought his fists to his temples. “Just take the stupid medicine and go.”

Woohyun grabbed his bag and frowned. “Only tried to help,” he mumbled. “Have a good day.”

“Yea, whatever,” the other waved him off.

Woohyun gritted his teeth as he flashed a short smile. This salve better be worth it, making his mother’s joints better. Or else, he just might have to beat up this punk…which was a lie. He’d probably just bury this frustrating incident deep down like he has down with many others. But that wasn’t too bad. He’d gotten good at it.

The only horrible thing was that the salve worked perfectly, which meant that he would have to see the jerk again soon.

* * *

 Sunggyu watched the lunatic who messed with his precious potion stalk out of his shop. He’d been trying to perfect the rejuvenation potion for months, and he felt like he was on a verge of a break through. The problem with normal rejuvenation potions were similar to the problems with plastic surgery. It looked too stiff when used on skin, restricting facial expressions. Not even magic could melt the plastic look that unnatural skin tightening left.

Sure the potion was superficial, but after being rejected from the master’s position at the school, Sunggyu was in need in of money. And this potion, if perfect like everything else he did, would be his cash cow. Or it was until that skinny buffoon ruined it by throwing in dried salamander liver into it. It made the potion curdle and smell…actually it smelled a lot better than it did before. And was it his imagination or the was the potion settling? It wasn’t the pale green liquid it was before, but now it was a viscous cream.

“Could it?” he wondered out loud. He took a dried and brittle white rose from his desk (it was the only thing he could think of to test the potion with because the dead petals were as fragile as skin. And if they could regain its former elasticity, so could human skin…hypothetically). Cautiously he dipped the rose into the green mess bellow, watching it swallow the flower. After a few seconds, and after seeing nothing explode (which is always a good sign), Sunggyu slowly and carefully pulled the flower back out. It was hard to analyze, at first, the condition of the petals because it was still coated in the green cream, but then the cream started to sink into the rose’s skin until it was brilliant white again. Sunggyu tapped the petals softly with his fingertips. They felt like silk and didn’t break under the pressure. Happily, Sunggyu threw the flower onto the desk and watched it stay intact, save for a few fallen petals.

He had done it. The missing ingredient literally had been under his nose the whole time. He quickly searched for a scroll and a quill so that he could write down the recipe before it fled his mind. A triumphant smile was glued onto his face as he wrote.

Maybe that kid wasn’t a buffoon after all. And maybe Sunggyu should thank him. It was almost like he knew what he was doing.

And at that thought, Sunggyu dropped his quill and looked up at the door, putting his finger to his lips. Maybe…just maybe that kid, that muggle did know what he was doing.

“Nah! Just a lucky guess.”

* * *

 A week later, Woohyun was working alongside his mother, serving the customers. And he hadn’t seen her move so easily in years. She also appeared to be re-energized and younger. However the more and more she could move, the contents of the jar lessened and lessened. Soon he found himself facing an empty jar, a begging mother, and no other choice but to confront the rude shop owner again.

Woohyun was shuffling down the street, head hanging down, staring at his dragging feet. _Stupid medicine. Stupid jerk. Stupid arthritis_ , he was condemning each and everything, including the street and the pebble that he was dibbling between his feet. Then he kicked the pebble a little too strongly. It flew high into the air until it...

"Owie!"

"...You!" Woohyun gasped in shock, pointing at the man across from him. It had been twelve years, and his hair had changed (to pink of all things), but he could recognize that pained giggle  and twinkling eyes anywhere. It was the wizard from years past, a distant memory, almost a dream. But here he was, in the flesh. The man who sent Woohyun down a path of ridicule and loneliness, but instead of feeling furious at the sight of the man, Woohyun was piqued. Why did he appear again? And today of all days?

The man lowered his hands from his pastel pink hair, and his eyes met with Woohyun's. They widened in recognition. His jaw dropped. And then his feet sprung into action as he ran down the street and away from Woohyun. "Hey! Wait! Where are you going?" he shouted after the wizard and chased after him. But for an old man, the wizard was surprisingly spry, and it had been years since Woohyun had been in proper shape. He was huffing and the old man only seemed to speed up. _Does he have wheels for feet? This is ridiculous_. Then the wizard suddenly hung a right and turned into a narrow alleyway. _Perfect. I can corner him and...where the hell did he go?_ Woohyun looked skywards, and sure enough, he saw a tuft of pink hair sail over the edge of the roof. _Damn flying wizard_. He slumped down on the grungy brick wall of the alleyway. Even now, 12 years later, the proof of magic was still alluding him. He laughed to himself. He was getting as bad as those alien fanatics who try to prove the existence of UFOs. 

"You, move," someone commanded with a stern voice. Woohyun turned his head slightly and (with his horrible luck) saw the apothecary owner with his usual pout. "You're in front of the dumpster," he explained holding up the most disgustingly smelling bag that Woohyun had ever encountered. Fitting. A man with a stinky personality and a stinky pile of garbage. Woohyun took a small step to the side, begrudgingly following the other's orders. The owner walked up to the dumpster and threw the bag into it, but Woohyun wasn't paying attention, looking up at the roof the old wizard had leapt over. And so he was startled (and surprised) when the other asked him, "So you coming to pick up some more medicine?"

"How did you know?" Woohyun looked at him out of the corner of his eye, but his head was still tilted upwards.

"Your type doesn't come to this edge of town, unless it's for my stuff," the owner replied cockily as he wiped his hands on his pants. Woohyun scoffed and shook his head. "But it's true, isn't it? For you anyway," the other retorted.

Woohyun shrugged, "Whatever." The other smirked in victory and waved at Woohyun to follow him into his shop. Woohyun tsked and reluctantly followed. Who was this guy to think that he could order Woohyun around? Sure, he was probably older. He did seem to have an ancient aura about him. But having a few years over some didn't make you superior to them. Woohyun was grumbling to himself about everything he disliked about the guy, from his crummy attitude to his chunky piercings. But as he walked into the shop, he added one more thing to the list. 

He was f***ing wizard too.

As soon as they entered the store, they were faced with the sight of the black pot (which Woohyun now realized was technically a cauldron) shooting across the room. Woohyun was frozen in shock and would have been hit if it weren't for the store owner yanking the back of his neck, making Woohyun duck down with him. "Shit! Not again!" he cursed. "Yah! Dwaeji! You almost f***ing killed me!"

"Sorry, Master," a high and cracking voice broke out. Woohyun carefully raised his head and saw a small, grey creature with a hunched back and pointed ears. "I was told to clean up." There was a thud coming from behind the two. Woohyun craned his neck to see the cauldron sinking softly into a basin of water and suds. Then Woohyun's eyes darted back and forth between the grey critter and its owner who was dragging his hand down his face in frustration. His pupils moved back and forth like a fly zigzagging around. After a few moments, his mind finally processed the situation. He suddenly jumped up.

"House Elf! That's a f***ing House Elf!" he shouted happily as he pointed to the said elf, who just rolled his eyes and his raggedy sleeves as he made his way to the basin. Woohyun didn't mind because his attention was then focused on the owner. He started hopping more excitedly (the owner brought his hands to his chest lest the other trample on them in his zeal). "You! You're a wizard!" Woohyun shouted out his new discovery. But then a sudden wave of sadness overwhelmed him and he sank back down to the floor, kicking his legs in a short tantrum. "You, you're a wizard," he repeated, barely above a whisper this time. "Shit...life's unfair."

Being a wizard was his childhood dream (a secret desire as an adult). And the image of magical folk had been built up in his mind. He put them on a pedestal. They were a kind folk who fought evil, fought for love. And this punk was living his dream, and  couldn't be farther from the ideal that Woohyun had created in his mind. Just like that day on the playground 12 years prior, Woohyun felt his world crumbling about him.

But the owner couldn't be more unaware of Woohyun's internal dilemma even if he tried. He just got up and straightened his pants. "Yah! Dwaeji! How many times have I told you to clean up after hours?" He reprimanded the elf, but he wasn't facing him. Instead the shop owner was walking behind the checkout counter, struggling through the drawers.

"I don't receive orders only from you, sir," the House Elf retorted, and something told the dazed Woohyun that this was a regular conversation.

The owner sighed and slammed a drawer shut. "That old man has been here again?" The elf nodded distractedly, practically falling into the basin to scrub the bottom of the cauldron. "Aish! I'm gone for two seconds, and he already made a mess of things...as usual." He looked up at the elf. "Yah, where is the old man?"

"Gone, sir. Almost as soon as he arrived," Dwaeji answered with a groan, lifting the cauldron out of the basin.

"Might as well. He'd probably make a mess of this too," the owner said pulling out a long, slender white wand from the drawer. The wand looked delicate, contrasting harshly against his black clothes. "Hey you!" He called. Woohyun looked around and realized that he was the 'you.' His gaze met with the other's, and his blood went cold. The owner's eyes were narrowed, dark, and...serious. The tip of the white wand lined itself against the space in between Woohyun's dark eyebrows. "Don't move...Obliv-" 

And of course, Woohyun moved. He moved as quickly and as far away from the other as he could. He put his hands up. "Woah woah woah! Let's not be rash. There's no need for a memory charm," he tried to deflate the situation. And it worked. The other lowered his wand and stared at Woohyun with a confused look.

"How...how did you know it was a memory charm?" the owner asked, hands still at his side. "Are you a wizard?" His voice sounded unsure why he even proposed that question, especially since Woohyun's reaction just moments prior showed otherwise.

And so Woohyun couldn't fight back the chuckle rising in his throat. "Not really, I'm a Potterhead," he explained still nervously chuckling.

The wizard was now scratching his head with his wand. He was still lost. "What does drugs have to do-"

"No, no, no," Woohyun cut him off and adamantly denied. "I'm a Harry Potter fan." But that clarification didn't seem to clear the cloud of confusion hanging over the other. "You know, like the books, and movies...and isn't he kind of your hero? I mean, he did defeat He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named... _Lord Voldemort_ ," he said the name barely above a whisper because the shop owner did not seem to be following.

Finally, a light seemed to have gone off in his head. "Oh!" the shop owner exclaimed. "Those muggle books."

"Muggle books? You...you mean they're not real, b-but you're a wizard?!" Woohyun stuttered in disbelief.

The owner put the wand in his back pocket and returned back to the counter, scrounging around again. "Yea, I am, but those books are more like...historical fiction," he explained, pulling out several jars and a new cauldron. Then he let out a (slightly condescending) laugh. "It's not like the entire fate of the wizard world would rest in the hands of a moody teenager who only really used two spells over and over and over again. How stupid and weak do you muggles think wizards are to believe that drivel?"

Woohyun stood frozen in his spot. It was like he had just learned that his favorite love song was written about a sandwich. The characters that he identified with, the struggles that paralleled (sort of) his own, they were all made up, to an extent. That English woman, probably an actual witch, just took her own history and tweaked it to appeal to a muggle audience, and she was now probably laughing at fans like himself, who bought everything, as she rolled in the royalties. And here Woohyun stood, feet fast to the floor, right smack dab in the wizard world he dreamed of, and he was starting to hate it.

The shop owner must have been aware (and oddly worried by the looks of his expression) of Woohyun's inactivity. He cleared his throat, calling the other's attention. Woohyun jerked his head in its direction. He saw the wizard, resting his hands on the counter and leaning on them. "Some things were true. There were fascist wizards like muggle ones, and magical wars like nonmagical ones. Our kinds really aren't that different," he said with a shrug. "We both make shit up, but it's nothing to be depressed about." Woohyun raised an eyebrow at the last statement. It slightly sounded like the other was actually, in his own unique and crude way, offering condolence. "Come here," the shop owner gestured at the other to come up to the counter with him.

 Woohyun apprehensively shuffled over a few steps. The other rolled his eyes and waved more impatiently. "The wand's gone, okay? I'm not going to charm you!" he promised with an angry shout.

Woohyun scoffed. "Well, you certainly aren't charming," and somehow that weak retort bolstered his confidence, especially after seeing a flash of hurt run across the wizard's eyes. That extra sprig of boldness allowed him to come up to the counter. He flashed the other a proud grin.

"Haha," the wizard spoke dryly. Then he took in a deep breath, screwing his eyes shut, already regretting what he was about to say. He tilted his head as he spoke, "Look, fiction or not. That book must have had some things about magic right because you knew what my rejuvenation potion needed, down to the exact weight." He opened up his eyes finally. "I want to know if that was just a fluke, or if you actually know a thing or two." Woohyun was pretty sure it was the former of the two, but he wasn't willing to back down to the other yet, especially if he admitted the truth, he'd probably be facing the memory charm again. So he kept the confident grin on his face as he stared down the wizard right back. The other smirked and began to throw things quickly but methodically into the cauldron. "Show me," he spoke slowly as he was readying the challenge. "What's missing from this," he finished, pushing the cauldron underneath Woohyun's nose, and he was assaulted with smells he hadn't encountered before.

Woohyun inhaled deeply, trying to calm himself down as he surveyed the spread in front of him. He peered into the cauldron. It was a brown, lumpy mess that smelled (ugh) vaguely of vomit. _It's a soup, Woohyun. Just a simple soup that mom told you to make, but you're missing just one thing and that's...a clue! I have no idea what any of this shit is, or even what the Hell this potion is!_ Woohyun quickly glanced up at the smug wizard in front of him. The owner's pointer finger was tapping his wand that somehow made it back into his hand. The threat was now evident: do this right, or you'll forget this ever happened. And Woohyun waited for too damn long for this moment: a golden ticket (so to speak) into the wizarding world (and not fake in Orlando. The real deal). _Stupid jerk, not even giving me a clue_. Woohyun closed his eyes as he thought, searching through his mind like a book, quickly scanning as he flipped each page furiously. _What would Harry do?_ He found himself asking. _What...would...Harry...Potter...do?_

Woohyun laughed. The answer was so clear now. The rotten smell, the lumpy mess that was a potion, Woohyun had seen this all before, or at least read it. He looked up at the owner whose smug smile was starting to disappear from his face as he began to realize that Woohyun might've had a clue. And then his hands immediately went up to protect his head, but it was already too late and Woohyun was significantly faster. He plucked a few hairs from the wizard's head and threw them into the cauldron, which began to sizzle with the new addition. "Polyjuice Potion," Woohyun said victoriously, gesturing to the gross mess in front of him.

The wizard looked at him dumbfounded as Woohyun began to pour himself a glass of the nasty liquid (he had always wanted to try it). The wizard finally snapped out of it and was about to tear the glass away from Woohyun's hands. "No! Don't," he shouted in vain. It was too late once again (the owner had VERY slow reflexes). The potion had already slipped past Woohyun's lips and was traveling down his throat, burning a path down his esophagus. And the taste was every bit as horrible as he had read, but he wasn't about to show any sign of it on his face. Woohyun kept a happy smile as the owner looked at him with wide eyes.

But the smile faltered once he felt his body rumble and shake. Woohyun then sprouted up a few centimeters. He could feel the hairs shrink back into his scalp to give him the shaved sides. His vision also grew blurry because apparently the wizard (among other things) had perfect vision (lucky duck), so his contacts were no longer necessary. Finally, his clothes became a bit tighter on his body, his shoulders a bit broader now.

In spite of the weird feeling of being in someone else's skin (quite literally) and the horrible taste (and after taste), it was all worth it to see the look on the wizard's face at that moment. A look of pure and utter defeat, accompanied by disbelief. His face was paler than usual. And Woohyun didn't even know that it was possible to pout while having your jaw hang wide open. But the owner did.

"So," Woohyun began in a foreign voice. It made his heart stop a bit, hearing someone else's voice come from his mouth. "Are you still going to zap me?"

The wizard studied Woohyun carefully like his own reflection in a mirror (he even fixed his hair a few times, only to realize it was Woohyun's hair that was messed up). Then he finally snapped and began laughing like a crazed child, bending over and slapping his knee. He also had to grab the countertop to keep him from falling over. And (Woohyun was grateful to see this) he let the white wand drop from his hands, crashing down onto the floor.

"A muggle," he wheezed. "A muggle who knows magic better than...whew! Most wizards. Haha. Oh God. What is this world coming to?" The wizard pulled himself upright, watching Woohyun shift in his body. He narrowed his eyes. "How did you know? This isn't exactly stuff people teach. It's forbidden for most."

Woohyun regained his smile, grateful that the wizard apparently never read the books. He shrugged, trying to appear nonchalant. "You know, I pick it up from here and there," he answered, but the wizard looked like he wasn't buying it.

But the shop owner couldn't also come up with a better answer. He hung his head and then almost immediately flung it back, looking up at the ceiling as if he was praying. "Let's...let's make a deal," he proposed with his eyes still fixed on the ceiling.

"What?" 

The wizard brought his head down, and their gazes met. "A deal," he said with a resigned sigh, not believing what he was about to do. "I need some help with my potions, and for whatever reason, maybe because of those stupid books, you seem to know a lot about magic...or you're really lucky, but either way I could use it." 

Woohyun crossed his arms, trying hard to maintain his cool, but on the inside he was overjoyed. His childhood dreams were on the verge of fruition...almost. He wasn't going to be a wizard exactly, but he was in. In on the exclusive wizard world. A happy giggle escaped his lips that he tried hard to fight back. He tried his best to turn it into a scoff and looked away. "What do I get out of it?"

"I can make the arthritis basically disappear." Woohyun's eyes widened  at that offer. "It's a good deal, right?" the wizard seemed awfully proud of himself. But Woohyun couldn't argue with that. It was a good deal. More than he could ever dream of. His mother's hands and knees would be as good as new.

But he wasn't about to let the other see how thrilled he was. "I guess," he coughed out, still avoiding the wizard's gaze. Then he turned to face the other, thrusting his hand into the space between them. "Let's shake on it."

The owner looked at the hand dubiously and titled his head, as if he was rethinking this whole thing. But he took the hand anyway. "Deal," he announced with a hard shake and a tight grip. Woohyun smirked. It didn't seem like the other wouldn't back down. _Good._ "My name's Kim Sunggyu, by the way," he finally introduced himself, letting go of the other's hand. He wiped his nose coolly as he sniffed and then put his hand in his pockets. "I thought you should know since we're going to be working together and all."

Woohyun nodded. "Nam Woohyun." He looked around the shop, suddenly feeling awkward. The silence between them grew. "Well," Woohyun began. "I guess I'll take the medicine and leave." He grabbed the jar from off the shelf and began to head out the door (assuming that the free medicine was a part of the deal).

"Woohyun," Sunggyu called out his name for the first time, causing Woohyun to halt. It was a weird feeling, especially since the other said it with a bit of a laugh in his voice. Woohyun turned around and saw Sunggyu smiling bemusedly. "You might want to wait until the potion wears off."

"O-oh yea."

It was odd how quickly he forgot that he wasn't himself anymore.

* * *

Sunggyu smiled to himself. It was weird because he had been doing that a lot lately. His mouth was so used to turning the other way, into a frown, that smiling was actually starting to wear down his face, using muscles in ways he hadn't for a long time. And even weirder, he laughed. He laughed a lot today, and genuinely too. But he couldn't help it. He was excited. His dream was within reach. He could almost feel it grazing his fingertips. And this Nam Woohyun was going to give him the extra push he needed to grab a hold of it, the Philosopher's Stone.

The smile left his face. That muggle, he was as much of a mystery as the Stone itself. A man a few years younger than himself with no training whatsoever had an instinctual knowledge of arcane magic. And why? Because he read fictional books. 

Sunggyu laughed again. He had spent years, cooped up in dusty libraries and studies, reading from even dustier books (which caused much havoc to his already weak lungs). But apparently if he had only read the series about 'the little wizard that could'...

Life was truly unfair sometimes. 

But at the same time, it was getting better. Woohyun had been coming into his shop after his parents' restaurant closed to help concocting new potions. Yes, he began to learn a bit about the enigma. And maybe enough to be considered a acquaintances or borderline friends, but that was only because the muggle was so open about every...single...detail about his life, even down to what he ate and saw on his was over to Sunggyu's shop. Both of which Sunggyu found neither interesting nor worth sharing, but he found himself prompted to share the same about his day. Saying that Woohyun was talkative would be an understatement. He was loud, very loud. And after years of only having his nasty House Elf, Dwaeji (named after his pig-like nose and awful snoring), to talk to (which only really amounted to muttering out some commands), it was taxing. Sunggyu's voice began to grow hoarse from all the talking because Nam Woohyun wasn't going to hold a conversation all by himself. In fact, his favorite part of talking seemed to be asking questions.

"What's this?" "Why is it doing that?" "Is Dwaeji going to kill me?" "Did you have any childhood trauma?"

Although you couldn't tell it from his expression, Sunggyu didn't mind it. Woohyun reminded him of his best friend growing up. Which was both a good and bad thing. He felt younger than he did in years, but then there was also a longing for his friend quickly followed by regret of not having kept in touch. He had unknowingly sacrificed his best friend along with the rest of his social life in pursuit of the Stone. But Woohyun was helping  dip his toes back into social pool. And it felt warm.

Unfortunately they were making slow progress with the potion making. Sunggyu quickly realized that he had to teach Woohyun the basics, which took a whole week because of their limited time (which was mostly consumed by Woohyun's yammering and questions). The second week, Sunggyu decided to tackle a tough potion that he had been working on by himself, the invisibility potion.

Up to this point, wizard invisibility was truly nothing more than cloaking. To anyone with sharp eyes, like Sunggyu, it could easily be seen through. The wavering lines give it away. 

The only substance of true invisibility was the cloak of the Deathly Hallows. They say that it's impossible to  recreate for Death  made it. But much like Woohyun's beloved books, Sunggyu believed the story to be a work of fiction as well. If the cloak existed, then it can be made again. Or so went Sunggyu's thinking.

At the end of the week, Sunggyu was about to call it quits. But Woohyun's stubbornness did not. "We're going to figure this out tonight. I can feel it," he declared with resolutely furrowed brows.

"Can't you do what you did before and throw what we need into the pot?" Sunggyu whined, frustrated.

"I would, but your lecture on 'potion-making safety' kinda made me scared for ever wanting to do that again. I don't want to lose my eyebrows," Woohyun defended himself, caressing his brows.

 "Stop being a coward and just do it!" Sunggyu raised his voice and thruster several jars into the other's hands.

Woohyun scoffed. "I'm the coward?" He challenged, throwing the jars back at Sunggyu, who just barely managed to catch them. "Why don't you do it?"

"I already told you," Sunggyu retorted, slamming the jars onto counter. "My vast intellect prevents me from making instinctual decisions."

"Right," Woohyun's voice was dripping with sarcasm. "Your vast intellect," he said with air quotes, mocking the wizard. He put his hands on the counter and leaned forward, invading Sunggyu's personal bubble. "Then tell me why you're having a muggle help you." Woohyun smirked. He had him. The wizard was speechless, opening and closing his mouth as he couldn't find the words to say.

Then he found them. "Just f***ing do it!"

"You want me to do it?" The muggle asked. Sunggyu nodded. And Woohyun picked up a random jar. "Are you sure?" Sunggyu nodded a bit more impatiently. His foot could be heard incessantly tapping against the floor. Woohyun unscrewed the lid. "Are you sure?"

"Just do it already!"

"Okay!" Woohyun dumped the entire contents of the jar into the cauldron. He looked over to Sunggyu who was watching the cauldron cautiously. "If this blows up, it's on you," Woohyun threatened and then quickly ducked down onto the floor. He crouched and protected his head from the explosion that was about to come.

But it never did.

Woohyun stood up slowly. His eyes scanned for any signs of trouble. They could find none. Curiously he peered into the cauldron. It appeared to be empty, at least at first. There was smoke skimming off of some surface inside, like fog rolling on the water. But the actual potion could not be seen. "Holy shit," he mumbled.

"I-is everything alright?" Sunggyu stuttered. His head peaked over the counter. His hair was askew, showing that he was in the same position as Woohyun just a few seconds ago. They were really both cowards.

Confused by Woohyun's blank expression, Sunggyu peered into the cauldron cautiously. "Holy shit," he repeated. They had done it...or so it seemed. "We just need to test it out," Sunggyu thought out loud and scurried off to retrieve a shirt that they could dip into the potion.

After grabbing the nearest shirt, Sunggyu ran back into the room. He stood frozen in his spot. The shirt fell to the floor. "WOOHYUN! DON'T!" he shouted as he saw the other drain the glass of the potion.

Woohyun was confused. "But I thought you said we needed to test it?" He argued.

Sunggyu crouched back down to the floor. His clenched hands were fastened to his temples. "Not all potions are supposed to be ingested," he said barely above a whisper. "It's supposed to go on clothes like a dye." 

"Oh..."

Sunggyu got up and ran to Woohyun's side, jamming his fingers down his throat. "Come on, throw it up," he urged snuck fingers in deeper into the wetness.

Woohyun pulled them out with a hard tug, coughing. "Are you crazy?" He asked between hard breaths. "You could've killed me." He looked up at Sunggyu who was still holding onto him. He could feel the wizard's grip tighten on his shoulders. Sunggyu's eyes were fixed on his nose. "What?"

Sunggyu placed his finger on the seemingly empty space, but he felt it. It was still there, Woohyun's nose. He just couldn't see it. The emptiness spread across the rest of Woohyun's face, sucking in his lips, eyes, and forehead. Soon his whole head disappeared. Sunggyu stumbled backwards. The limbs were vanishing too, just like particles dissipating into the open air.

"F**k," the curse fell from Sunggyu's lips, but deservedly so.

Nam Woohyun was gone. 

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This probs isn't what you wanted, anon, but it's what you're getting! Hehe jk. Anyway, the whole chapter is basically set up for the actual story. So the next part will be more exciting.  
> Sorry for the wait!!
> 
> And yes, Jang Dongwoo is basically Dumbledore.
> 
> Thanks for reading.


	2. Strange how nearsighted being invisible makes you.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Invisible Hyun and Wiz Gyu go on an adventure.
> 
> A.K.A. Getting into the actual plot.

"F**k."

Sunggyu stepped back and stared at Woohyun with an expression that chilled the muggle to the bone. It was hard to put a name to it, but hopelessness made up a good portion of it. And that's exactly what one doesn't want to see after ingesting a strange potion. Woohyun chuckled, trying to ease the tension in the room (but it only seemed to make it worse because Sunggyu's face was soon overwhelmed with a definite expression, guilt). "Hyung," Woohyun's voice was quivering. "W-what's wrong?"

The wizard only managed to croak out one word from his suddenly dry mouth: "Look."

Woohyun gulped, feeling a blockage forming in his throat. He felt his hands shaking as he lifted them up to his eyes. He kept trying to lift them higher and higher until they reached his sight. It wasn't until the hands practically extended over his head when he finally realized it. They weren't there. He automatically looked down. His legs weren't there, peering under his shorts. His hands then flew up to his face. He felt his skin prickling under his fingertips, but gazing into his reflection in the protective glass that lined some of the shelves, it wasn't there either. _What am I? A vampire?_ His mind spewed nonsensically. But a second later, he arrived at the right conclusion: he was completely invisible. At that, Woohyun felt his knees shake, but at the same time, save for the nervous tremors surging through his body, he was frozen to his spot. "Hyung," he spoke, his lips barely moving.

Sunggyu slowly approached him and grabbed onto the muggle's shoulder with much apprehension (only Woohyun's body disappeared, not his clothes, so the shoulder was easy to find). Woohyun turned to face him, but try as he might, Sunggyu's gaze couldn't match his. After darting around the empty space where the head should have been, the wizard's eyes settled on his forehead. However he still tried to make his gaze strong and reassuring. "Hyung will fix this," he declared.

And Woohyun wanted to believe him, but doubts began to flood his mind. They barely knew what they did in the first place. How in Hell are they going to reverse it?

After giving his shoulder a few firms pats, Sunggyu pulled back his hand and placed his fingers on his lips in thought. "First, we should try to flush it out of your system, and then see if it wears off. If you're still the same in the morning, then...we'll have to make a trip," he was blabbering, but Woohyun didn't catch most of his words. Instead he was too busy clasping and unclasping his hands together. It was strange, being able to touch something he couldn't see. It was almost like holding some one else's, and many times, his hands missed each other entirely (depending on how far he pulled them away from each other). "Woohyun, did you hear me?" Sunggyu interrupted.

"Huh?"

Sunggyu rolled his eyes and repeated, "I said you should contact your parents. Tell them you're staying out tonight." He started walking to the backroom. Woohyun assumed that the other wanted him to follow him to use the landline, but then the wizard suddenly stopped in his tracks, causing Woohyun to run into him. Sunggyu turned, was startled at the sight of the headless figure he was met with, and tried to regain himself. "You muggles," he said, slightly breathless, "don't use owls."

"You have an owl!" Woohyun exclaimed, and before Sunggyu could say or do something else, the invisible man rushed past him like a gush of wind into the back room.

An hour later, after trying to pet Sunggyu's barn owl, which Woohyun called Hedwig (it was much more creative than Sunggyu's original name for it, Owllie) and after he was nipped on the finger one too many times, Woohyun finally made a phone call to his parents with his cell phone (which Sunggyu found astounding and was playing with it while Woohyun continued to play with Hedwig/Owllie). Woohyun told them that he was going out drinking with Kibum and was probably going to crash at his place afterwards, and they bought it, leaving Woohyun to wonder if he did that so often for his parents to accept that lie so readily.

Oddly enough, the night with Sunggyu sort of turned out like a night of going out with Kibum would have. Woohyun drank some weird colorful drinks, not knowing what the Hell he was ingesting. At times, they were hard to choke down and burned when they did. Then afterwards, he was hugging the toilet vomiting and, well, doing something else that rarely happened after his nights out with Kibum. And by the time Woohyun was ready for bed, he was a sweaty, smelly, tired mess. But Sunggyu, unlike Kibum, wasn't gentle (he didn't even pat the muggle on the back as he was heaving his guts out, because of what the wizard had done to him, mind you). Sunggyu carelessly showed him to the spare room as he himself sluggishly stumbled down the hall into his own bedroom.

Woohyun looked around the room glumly. He would do anything to be at Kibum's place now, crashing on that old, musty couch. The bed in this room was lumpy and sad, obviously unused for a long time. When Woohyun sat down on it, the springs groaned, showing their age. He sighed and pulled on the sleeves of his shirt. Sunggyu hadn't even given him a change of clothes, and the t-shirt he was wearing now was too thin. The room was too drafty, in addition to other things. So many knick-knacks, magical and non-magical alike, littered the room that Woohyun had little space to move lest he accidentally knock something over, breaking it or worse, hurting himself.

Woohyun had never thought that this feeling would ever flit across his mind, but there it was. He hadn't been part of the wizard world for long, but he was already sick of it, sick to death of magic.

He closed his eyes tightly, trying to envision himself in his own room, ignoring the creaking bed springs as he carefully laid himself down. In the morning, he'll be back to normal, he promised to himself. Tomorrow, he'll be back home in his own bed in his own room, wearing clean clothes and smelling nice. And with those happy thoughts, he was starting to drift off into a peaceful sleep, in spite of the awful bed and crowded room.

"Stupid muggle...sleeping in my room...I'm going to wrap my little fingers around his little muggle neck and..."

Woohyun jumped off of the bed and darted out of the room. 

* * *

 Sunggyu rolled onto his side and groaned. He wasn’t falling asleep as quickly as he normally did. Something was keeping him up, not allowing his conscious to slip away into slumber, and he knew very well what it was: guilt. Although he tried to assuage it, after all it wasn’t like he forced the potion down Woohyun’s throat, the guilt still remained. The guilt was soon followed by regret, that he didn’t erase Woohyun’s memory when he had the chance. But his greed for the Stone had trumped his rational thinking. He asked a muggle of all people to help him with the most complicated puzzle of Alchemy. And now, with this setback, the Philosopher’s Stone was even farther from his reach. Once again, guilt and regret washed over him.

Then his ears twitched at a sudden sound. He was used to the old house creaking and groaning as if it were alive (and he had his own suspicions that it might be), but this, this was not normal. A soft padding on the wooden floor, too heavy to belong to Dwaeji (who should also be asleep at this late hour). It was hesitant, irregular. Sunggyu slowly lifted his head from his pillow, brows creased as he sharpened his ears to the sound. He saw the doorknob jiggle and slowly turn, and then it opened just a crack revealing…nothing.

“Hyung? Are you awake?” a hoarse voice suddenly whispered.

Sunggyu (yelped just slightly and) threw one of his pillows straight at the door. “Shit, Woohyun!” he cursed. The door opened fully, and Sunggyu could see the other’s clothes hanging in mid air. “You need to wear a hat or something,” he whined, clutching the sheets up to his chest and fussing with the spread behind him. “You looked like a ghost,” he grumbled under his breath.

Woohyun had caught the pillow in mid air and hugged it to his chest, digging his chin into the soft fabric. “I’m sorry, hyung. I forgot how creepy I can be,” he sincerely apologized, but the other hardly acknowledged it and was busy nestling himself back into his bed, tucking the sheets all around him. Woohyun stood there awkwardly in front of the other, waiting to be acknowledged again. He sighed (he’s been doing that a lot lately). It would appear that with his dark clothes and transparent skin, Woohyun had just gotten lost in the shadows of the room for the wizard, completely unseen. Woohyun clutched on tighter to the pillow. He wasn’t liking the feeling that was slowly filling him up.

Then it happened. Sunggyu stopped with the sheets and looked in Woohyun’s direction, staring at the pillow he was holding (it’s difficult to know where to look a faceless person at). “What is it? Why are you awake?” the wizard asked in a tired voice.

Woohyun’s lips instinctively twitched up into a coaxing smile, trying to appear cute. He buried half of his face in the pillow as he looked up. “It’s scary in the guest room,” he said in the most pitiful voice he could muster. “And in your whole entire house. It makes weird noises.” He took a step forward and noticed that Sunggyu reflexively leaned back into his nest of pillows. Woohyun muffled a sad chuckle into the pillow. Cute faces and aegyo are useless if they can’t be seen. And all Sunggyu could see was a headless man with a pillow attached to his chest, approaching his own bed. He’s often heard that his aegyo was scary (or scarily effective), but now it was the truth.

And truly ineffective. “Do you want a sleeping draught or…whatever you muggles do to help you sleep?” Sunggyu responded in probably the most apathetic voice he could muster.

Apathetic or not, Woohyun also didn’t care. He just wanted a good night’s sleep after the hellish night he had. “Well, there is one thing we do,” he said, walking to the side of the queen-sized bed and began to lift of the covers.

“Woah woah woah!” the wizard exclaimed, tearing the covers away from the invisible boy’s hands. He tried to shoo away the other by waving his hands haphazardly into the air. “What are you doing? No no no. You can’t come in here.”

Woohyun huffed and stamped his foot. It was unfair. This was obviously the better room. The bed looked comfortable, like a cloud, and Woohyun didn’t feel like he would suddenly get crushed by an avalanche of knick-knacks. Not to mention that there were nothing in there wanting to kill him (although the look in Sunggyu’s eyes at the moment looked quite threatening). “Why not? It won’t mean anything,” Woohyun argued. “And the bed in the spare room talks,” he finished in a low and apprehensive tone, afraid to actually admit that he was scared of an inanimate object.

Sunggyu nodded in acknowledgement. “That’s just Dwaeji,” he answered. “He’s a bit grumpy…and an insomniac…and maybe schizophrenic.” His face grew to look more and more timid and understanding with each word he spoke. He then clicked his tongue and tilted his head. “You know what, maybe you _should_ sleep in here,” he admitted to Woohyun’s surprise (before Woohyun entered the room, his grand plan was to just sneak into the sleeping wizard’s bed and blame it on sleep walking, but never did he expect that Sunggyu would actually allow him to share a bed. He looked like one of those types that cherished being alone, especially to sleep). Woohyun was smiling brightly as he picked up the blankets again and was about to prop his leg on the bed; however, Sunggyu snatched the blankets away from him and the smile on his face. The wizard faced the other with a stern expression. He pointed down to the ground. “No, you’re sleeping there. On the floor,” he drew the line and tossed the spare blanket at the foot of his bed to the other. The blanket fell on Woohyun, making him look like one of those stereotypical and cheesy ghost costumes, causing Woohyun’s frown to deepen even more. He already felt like a ghost. He didn’t need to look like one. So he turned the blanket around, gathering the fabric at his chin so that the wool framed his face. Now he looked like a saint. Still something dead, but much better. He then began to whimper, most pitifully. Sunggyu might not be able to see his aegyo, so Woohyun was going to be damn sure that he could hear it. The wizard let out a short chuckle in disbelief. “Are you begging?”

The covered head nodded. “Hyung,” Woohyun called out in a nasally pitch. “It’s cold.” He then shivered violently to prove his point.

Sunggyu looked the other up and down, the gears in his brain meshing as he weighed the pros and cons (there were far too many cons to count, but the one pro outweighed them all: Woohyun would stop bothering him and let him just sleep). The wizard scooted over to the side and patted the bed. “Fine,” he grumbled and placed two pillows in a line as soon as his bed sank down, signaling that Woohyun had laid down. “Don’t cross this,” he pointed to the pillow barrier. “And don’t touch me.”

“Psh! Like I want to,” the muggle retorted, happily closing his eyes in the nice warm bed with no angry House Elf wanting to kill him. _Tomorrow, I’ll be back home, back to normal tomorrow_.

But he wasn’t.

* * *

The next morning Woohyun felt incredibly stiff. He had spent the whole night curled up at the edge of the bed, just barely hanging on. He slowly lifted his head, rubbing his neck roughly. Looking at the other side of the bed, Woohyun scoffed. In the dark of the night, he wasn't able to see it, but in the orange light of the early morning, he could now. Sunggyu was comfortably spread out on the bed, with one leg draped over the sacred pillow boundary and soft snores passing through his wide open mouth. He had taken up 3/4 of the bed and left the poor muggle with a measly quarter. Woohyun would've liked to have said that he was surprised, but he really wasn't. After all, the number one person that Sunggyu looked out for was Sunggyu. 

Woohyun ripped the pillow out from underneath the wizard's legs and hit the other on the stomach with it. "Yah! Wake up!" he exhorted. The wizard simply groaned and rolled away. "Yah!" Woohyun yelled a little louder and hit a little harder. "Wake up!"

"Why?" Sunggyu grumbled, hiding under the sheets. "It's too early."

Woohyun checked the time on his cell phone. It was 10 o'clock, and he was used to waking up at 6 to prep the restaurant with his parents. He rolled his eyes at the other, leaned across the former pillow line, and pulled the sheets off of Sunggyu. "It's 10, you lazy ass. Don't you have a store to open?" he teased and chuckled at the confused face staring back at him, the bleary eyes darting everywhere. 

Woohyun could see Sunggyu's brain slowly wake up and grasp the situation. The wizard pushed Woohyun away and then rubbed his sleep filled eyes. "The store opens when I wake up, and I'm not awake," he declared laying back down, bringing the covers back over him. But before they went over his head, he sent a pointed glare over to Woohyun. "I thought I told you to stay on your side." He then laid the covers over his head.

The muggle muttered some curses under his breath and stuck his tongue out at the other. "Yah! Put that tongue back!" Sunggyu's order was muffled by the thick blankets.

Woohyun blinked quickly, shocked. "But...how did you know? You couldn't see," he mumbled.

Sunggyu pulled down the covers just past his chin and pointed to his ears. "I can't see it, but I can hear it," he explained in an annoyed voice. But the annoyance soon fled as the wizard's eyes examined the other. "Damn, I still can't see you."

The muggle chewed on his lower lip. He had been afraid of acknowledging that to himself, but it was a new day, hours after he ingested the potion, and he still remained invisible. He knew it already, of course, when he couldn't see his hands as they pummeled the wizard with a pillow. It didn't mean that he wanted to admit it though. He was happy being in denial for a few seconds, but now he had to confront the truth. Nothing changed. 

Woohyun felt the bed shift and was surprised to see the other rising out of the bed. "Hyung, I thought you were going back to sleep," he said. 

"I'm not tired anymore," he answered simply as he walked over to the door and opened it. "Now get out. I need to change."

* * *

 “Now get out. I need to change,” Woohyun mimicked Sunggyu from moments earlier. He was now in the back room with his chin resting on a table, staring at the barn owl across from him. “Hedwig, does your master know that ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ go a long way? Doesn’t he have any manners?” he asked as he poked his fingers through the bars of her cage. His index finger caressed her silky wings, but was bitten shortly afterwards. “Shit! How do you do that?” he cursed, retracting his hand and sucking on his new wound.

Then he felt a sharp prick in between his shoulder blades. “Do you like it when I poke you?” Woohyun turned around and saw Sunggyu wearing a beanie and hoodie (all black again), which was weird considering that it was still summer (although nearing its end). Woohyun chuckled a little. The wizard was trying to look ‘hard-core’ again. And apparently to Sunggyu, nothing said ‘hard-core’ more than  possibly getting heat exhaustion (but to Woohyun it just seemed stupid).

The muggle smiled, quickly turned, and bit Sunggyu’s finger (turns out that there’s at least one benefit to being invisible: revenge). The wizard yelped and jumped away from the other, scowling. Woohyun laughed. “I see your point,” he joked. “What’s with the outfit? Are we going mountain-hiking?”

Sunggyu was still rubbing his finger as he raised an eyebrow and decided that he’ll never understand muggle jokes no matter how much time he spent with Woohyun. “No. We’re going out. I need to get a book, and I don’t trust you alone in the shop.”

“What do you mean? I’m completely capable of—OW! Stop biting me, Hedwig!” Woohyun shouted and began to nurse his newly injured finger. Sunggyu just shook his head a lightly laughed at the other. Then the wizard saw the floating t-shirt turn towards him. “I think that I don’t like your owl anymore,” he heard Woohyun announce, and was probably pouting too like the child he was being.

“At least the feeling’s mutual,” Sunggyu quickly retorted and continued before Woohyun could dispute it. “Now strip,” he commanded.

“WHAT?!”

“We’re going outside, out in public where plenty of people still don’t know about magic. And I plan on keeping it that way, so we can’t have your clothes floating around,” Sunggyu impatiently explained. “I’ve got clothes in here,” he patted the messenger bag at his side. “That you can change into once we get to the store. But for now…strip.”

“Hyung!” Woohyun protested.

“What? What’s wrong?” Sunggyu raised his voice, but it was hard for Woohyun to take him seriously as the wizard’s eyes were angrily glued to his chest. “It’s not like I can see anything anyways. You’re f***ing invisible!”

Woohyun knew when he was fighting a losing battle and when to give in. “Fine,” he relented. “But…just don’t look,” he stammered, turning his back to the other, and began to take off his clothes, starting with his shirt. After his shirt was tossed on the floor, Woohyun took a glance backwards as he started to unbutton his shorts. Sunggyu had listened to his request and was busy feeding Owllie/Hedwig. Woohyun breathed a sigh of relief as he quickly tore off his bottom layers. “Okay,” he announced. “I’m ready.” Woohyun turned around only to see Sunggyu’s eyes fastened in the exact spot where Woohyun didn’t want him to look (figures that the crude wizard could never find his eyes but could find his package easily).

“I told you that I couldn’t see anything.”

* * *

 The two were now out on the streets walking side-by-side, mostly. Woohyun did have to dodge people, seeing as he wasn’t there in the first place. Running into an invisible naked man isn’t so easy to explain, so it was best to avoid it altogether. Unfortunately, Sunggyu was oblivious to his plight. “Hyung wait up!” Woohyun whispered loudly, his voice barely audible over the perpetual murmurs of the crowd.

Sunggyu leaned his cheek against his raised shoulder, speaking directly into the microphone of the earphones, “Keep up.” Despite being almost left in the wizard’s metaphorical dust, Woohyun still managed to giggle. He had given Sunggyu his phone and earphones to use, so that they could speak together in public without drawing eyes. (A/N: slight flashback)

Sunggyu stared at the ear buds curiously. “So muggles wear these whenever they want to talk to themselves?”

Woohyun laughed. Of course, Sunggyu was familiar with the concept of a phone from his studies, but the idea of speaking through a headset still alluded him. Woohyun would like to see him react to speakerphone or facetiming, but he’d have to save it for another time. He walked up and gently placed the earbuds into Sunggyu’s ears. “No, someone’s on the other line, so they’re actually talking to somebody else,” he explained. “See, you can hear the person’s voice through here,” he lightly pressed on a bud. “And your voice is transmitted through here,” he lifted up the rectangular microphone-box to Sunggyu’s lips. Woohyun then dropped the mike, stepped back, and took pride in his wonderful explanation.

“So I talk into it like this?” Sunggyu nearly shouted, pinning the microphone in between his cheek and shoulder so that his lips brushed against the microphone (he couldn’t use his hands, of course, because they had to remain ‘coolly’ in his pockets).

Woohyun winced. “Maybe just lower your voice a bit.”

“How’s this?” Now it was just a slightly raised voice.

The muggle sighed. “Close enough.”

(A/N: and we’re back!) “Hyung, where are we going anyways?” Woohyun decided to ask because Sunggyu already had the microphone pinned down.

“I told you, a bookstore,” he curtly answered.

“There are like 20 bookstores in this town! Care to be more specific?” Woohyun argued as he narrowly missed running into an elderly woman carrying too many groceries (he would’ve stopped to help, but that would mean losing sight of Sunggyu…and probably giving the grandma a heart attack).

“The Mad Hatter’s.”

“The Mad Hatter’s?” Woohyun repeated, stopping in his tracks. That bookstore was a Mecca for girls for two reasons: it had the largest selection of romantic and fantastical books, and its eclectic but handsome owner with a penchant for (you guessed it) hats. The yellow-walled shop, painted with murals based on _Alice in Wonderland_ , was the last place he would expect a ‘tough guy’ like Sunggyu to enter willingly. Also it was one of the last places Woohyun would expect to be a secretive, magical establishment with the occult books Sunggyu needed. It wasn’t a hole-in-the-wall spot like Sunggyu’s apothecary, but it was popular, wildly popular. But, wasn’t that what made it the perfect spot? It was completely unsuspecting. “Heh, the Mad Hatter’s.”

Woohyun lifted his head to search for his overdressed friend in the crowd. The beanie clad head was nowhere to be found, but Woohyun wasn’t too upset. He knew exactly where the other was going, and the bookshop was  just around the corner. The invisible boy jogged lightly to catch up with the other’s leisurely step and caught up with the wizard just as he was about to enter the store. “You,” Woohyun whispered with a small pant, touching Sunggyu on the shoulder. “You really need to be more considerate. You left me back there.”

“But here you are,” Sunggyu retorted with a small smile, not even bothering to pin down the mike again seeing as they were about to shed their cover. “Come on, ghost boy. Let’s go in.” The wizard then opened the door, and Woohyun, exacting revenge once again, brushed passed Sunggyu, causing the other to stumble and gasp, and entered into the store before him. Sunggyu muttered some insults under his breath as he straightened his ruffled hoodie. After regaining composure, the wizard stepped inside and groaned. He really hated the fact that this was the only wizard bookstore in town. It was so…girly. In fact, a gaggle of giggling girls stopped their excited chatter to shoot suspicious looks at the male newcomer. Sunggyu just nodded his head towards them in acknowledgement and walked straight up to the empty checkout desk.

“Yah! Sungjong-ah!” Sunggyu called out, ringing the bell on the desk incessantly. “Yah! Lee Sungjong!”

Woohyun batted the other’s hand away from the bell, the constant ringing was hurting his ears. “Hyung,” he reprimanded, glancing at the cute group of girls at the other side of the store. He then hung his head and blushed deeply. They were staring right at him, or through him to Sunggyu, and here he was, completely naked. Of course, the girls couldn’t tell, but Woohyun’s hands drifted downwards regardless to cover his precious things. Then he heard the tinging of the bell again and turned to see Sunggyu ringing it with a satisfied smile on his face. Woohyun slapped his hand away again, giving the other a stern and menacingly glare, which really didn’t matter because even if Sunggyu could see it, he was having too much fun pestering the other. The wizard rang the bell again.

But before Woohyun could slap/bite the wizard again, another hand clamped over the bell. The two of them slowly looked up to the hand’s own and saw a brightly smiling face of a young man with long black hair, covered by a baseball cap with multi-colored feathers glued around it like a crown (Woohyun almost sputtered into a laugh at the monstrosity that the other had on his head, but then he remembered he wasn’t supposed to be there and covered his mouth with his hands). “Sunggyu-hyung, it’s good to see you again” the owner greeted cheerfully, but his teeth were grinding against each other, showing his irritation with the elder. “How can I help you?”

“I need to see your _special_ collection,” Sunggyu spoke in a hushed tone, shooting a worried glance at the girls in the corner, whose attention was immediately drawn by the vibrant owner. “I, uh, have a problem that I need your help with.” His eyes fixed on Woohyun for a split second before flitting back to the owner.

“Ah, of course, follow me,” Sungjong gestured to Sunggyu to follow him into the back room. The duo slipped behind the desk and followed the owner into the darkly lit room. Sungjong then exchanged his blazing cap for the stereotypical wizard’s hat (complete with sparkling stars). “So what mess did you land in this time, hyung?” Sungjong asked with polite irreverence, fixing his bangs under his new hat. “I didn’t get any new books about that rock thing either.”

“The Philosopher’s Stone isn’t some rock!” Sunggyu combated.

Sungjong waved his hand to the person behind him. “I know. I know. Great discovery. Achievement of a lifetime,” he responded distractedly as he walked up to the gray wall at the edge of the room. He then began pressing his body up against it. “Aish! I can never find it,” he lamented as his hands searched the wall with his cheek pressed against it.  He looked back to the other with an embarrassed smile. “Some help, hyung?”

Sunggyu shook his head and pressed lightly against a small crack in the wall. “Seriously, this is _your_ store,” the elder teased.

“But I haven’t been getting much wizard business lately,” Sungjong explained, backing off from the wall and giving his hyung a ‘thank you.’ The crack in the wall began to grow, splitting it in half and then folding back on itself like an accordion until it revealed the large library behind it. Woohyun’s jaw unhinged in shock and began muttering nonsensically. His eyes darted to the others who were not even paying attention to the folding wall and was just continuing their conversation, acting like nothing (completely awesome) just happened. “But it’s not like I’m hurting for business,” Sungjong bragged, turned towards Sunggyu. The young wizard then cocked his head, jingling the bell at the tip of his hat, and crossed his arms over his chest. “I just don’t get why they stopped coming, hyung. I heard that they’re going to the next town over instead.” He fussed with his bangs under the brim of his hat, huffing. “I just don’t get it.”

Sunggyu nodded and patted the other on the shoulder. “I don’t get it either, Jjong,” he sympathized. Woohyun snapped his jaw shut and stared at his friend out of the corner of his eye. It was obvious what was wrong with the shop and why it had lost its magical customers. The colorful decor with white rabbits and red roses was enough to deter any guy, magical or not, and the constant throng of teenage girls would be enough to scare off the skittish wizard folk, who are used to hiding from muggles. But Sunggyu played dumb, actually being considerate of the bookstore owner. _Huh, imagine that. He’s human._

Then the wizard’s eyes flickered over to Woohyun, causing him to stiffen. He was always surprised how the other could find him, even when Woohyun did nothing to give away his position (except softly breathing, but he kind of had to do that to live). “You can talk now, you know,” he said, ruffling through his messenger bag. “It must be killing you, having to be so quiet.”

Sungjong spun around after having stepped foot inside the library. “Hyung, who are you talking to?”

“My problem,” Sunggyu answered handing a old, matted bathrobe in Woohyun’s direction.

Woohyun scoffed as he took the robe and put it on. “Figures that this would be the outfit you prepared for me,” he muttered, tying the sash tightly and securely around his waist. It felt good to be covered up again. And talking, he really missed doing that. “And I’m glad that you think of me as a problem, hyung.”

Now it was Sungjong’s turn to look mystified. He lifted his hand, pointing at the floating robe across from him. “Y-you,” he stuttered. “You have a ghost too!”

“Too?” Sunggyu and Woohyun spoke in unison.

* * *

“This is Myungsoo. My boyfriend!” Sungjong exclaimed, gesturing dramatically to the specter crouching over a comic book in the corner of the library. Once he noticed himself being introduced, Myungsoo stood up, abandoning the book, and drifted over to Sungjong, looking at the other with a warm smile.

“You’re dating a ghost,” Sunggyu challenged with a raised eyebrow.

“I’m not a ghost,” Woohyun objected to Sungjong’s statement from before.

Sungjong nodded happily. “We’ve been together for a couple of months. And he’s only been dead for…how long again?” he turned to Myungsoo, whose attention had not even drifted from his boyfriend, and asked.

“65 years,” the ghost answered cheerfully. Sungjong then turned away, but that didn’t deter Myungsoo’s focus. The ghost instead raised his hand to Sungjong head, hand sailing through the tall wizard’s hat as he patted his boyfriend’s hair. His smile grew a little more somber.

“See, hyung. That’s not too long,” Sungjong defended. “How long has yours been dead for? And how come he’s not materializing? Is he shy?”

“I’m not a ghost,” Woohyun repeated a little more strongly.

Sunggyu pinched the space between his eyes, groaning. “Jjong, what if he has a grudge?”

“Oh he does,” Sungjong answered honestly. “But it doesn’t matter. We decided that the past isn’t important, and the present is what really matters, right?”

“Right!” the ghost chirped.

Sunggyu dropped his hands from his head and waved them around. “But isn’t that just what a grudge is? It’s a thing from the past tying them to the land of the living. It’s the whole reason why he’s here!” he shouted.

“I’m still not a ghost if anyone cares,” Woohyun muttered under his breath, hating being ignored when he finally was allowed to be acknowledged. Even the ghost boyfriend wasn’t paying attention to him, his ghastly gaze fixed on his lover. It was really creepy.

“Let’s stop focusing on me, and let’s talk about your problem, hyung,” Sungjong dismissed the huffed up wizard. He put his hands on his hips, determined to look serious, but it was hard when his hat jingled cheerfully every time he moved. He nodded over to Woohyun, the bell clanged. “Do you want to have him exorcised?”

“I’M NOT A GHOST!” “He’s not a ghost!” the two shouted together. Sunggyu shifted awkwardly in his spot, glancing sheepishly over to Woohyun who was huffing angrily. “I…I turned this muggle invisible, alright!” he reluctantly admitted.

“Oooh,” Sungjong said, gathering the situation. He looked down at the floor while he thought. Then his head jerked upwards as he snapped his fingers. “I have just the book. Follow me!” he announced as he scampered across the room and up a ladder to the second floor.

Woohyun was about to follow, but he was stopped by Sunggyu’s hand. “You, stay,” Sunggyu uttered in his usual commanding tone. Woohyun rolled his eyes.

“Why? Sungjong already knows about me. I can help,” he argued. Then he glanced back at the ghost who was now looking past the top of the ladder where Sungjong just disappeared over. Woohyun shivered. He didn’t particularly wanted to stay behind with the ghost lover. The muggle never saw someone literally _moon_ over someone, but it really did seem that Myungsoo completely revolved around the young wizard. And his face had lit up as if the sun was shining right on him, but the sun was now hidden away from him. Myungsoo’s face was darkening by the second. Nope, Woohyun didn’t want to be near that at all.

But Sunggyu had different plans. “Talk to him,” he ordered nodding over to the gloomy ghost. “It might help.” He then spun around and began to climb up the ladder.

“Help with what? Losing my mind? He looks like he wants to eat my soul! Don’t you care?” he called after the wizard, spewing out anything and everything that might make the other pity him and let him tag along.

“Nope, not particularly,” Sunggyu peered over the ladder with a proud smile before sauntering off after Sungjong.

“Jerk!” Woohyun shouted after him. 

“Do you really think that I’m going to eat your soul?”

Woohyun yelped, jumping straight up. Unbeknownst to him, the ghost had floated over to him. His head now just hovering over Woohyun’s shoulder. “Ah, no. No! It was just a joke,” he insisted, but Myungsoo’s face still looked dark. The ghost then pulled back, knowing how uncomfortable he was making the other. Woohyun all of the sudden felt guilty. He lately was all too familiar with the strange feeling that followed accidentally creeping the Hell out of someone. It was something akin to having live spiders crawling around in your stomach while a heat blazes under your skin. And even though Myungsoo was deceased, something told Woohyun that that feeling didn’t fade away after death.

“So,” he started, forcing a large smile on his face, which made his voice sound more friendly. “How is it being dead and all?”

* * *

Sunggyu was sitting on the floor, leaning against a bookshelf as he flipped through a large and ancient codex in his lap. Sungjong was busy darting from shelf to shelf, searching for another book that might aid Sunggyu’s ‘little problem.’ The young wizard already stacked several books next to his friend, and none of them, Sunggyu feared, were going to help. He’d already read these several times before in his research for the Stone. He was just hoping that he had overlooked something, but until then, he had more pressing issues on his mind.

“Sungjong-ah,” he looked up from the yellowing pages. “You can’t be serious about this.”

Sungjong had climbed up a ladder and was running a finger across the spine of a book as he read it’s title. “No, I’m serious, hyung. I swear that I read about it somewhere,” he answered in a distracted voice, knitting his brows in concentration.

Sunggyu rolled his eyes and shut the book in his lap and set it down, only to pick up and open another one. “No, I’m talking about your boyfriend. I think it’s all just one big mistake,” the wizard replied, carefully turning the fragile pages of the old book. He glanced down at the pages in front of him and groaned. “It’s not in here either,” he muttered.

The young wizard jumped down gracefully from the ladder, the bell in his hat tingling as his feet touched the floor like a cat. He faced the other with a grave face, hands placed firmly on his hips. “You’re in no position to talk about making mistakes, _hyung_ ,” Sungjong sneered. “You made an innocent muggle invisible!”

Sunggyu slammed the book closed. “Trust me. He’s anything but innocent. Hell, technically _he_ was the one who made the potion,” Sunggyu defended himself, but then immediately winced at the confession he had just made. Kim Sunggyu, the self-proclaimed master of potion-making, didn’t make the perfect invisibility potion, but a mere muggle did. He slowly opened his eyes to see Sungjong frowning deeply, tapping his foot as he waited for Sunggyu to explain further. “He’s not just a muggle. He’s my…assistant,” he said in a barely audible voice.

“Just how desperate are you for this rock, hyung?! You didn’t think this all the way through. Of course, forcing a muggle to do magic would only end up in disaster. It’s like a lumberjack handing a chainsaw to a five year-old and asking him to cut down a tree,” the young wizard reprimanded. Sunggyu narrowed his eyes on the other and snarled. Yes, he was in the wrong, but the younger had stepped outside the line in chiding him. Where was the respect? Besides, the bookstore owner didn’t know the whole story, not how Woohyun’s instincts were accurate, how the muggle knew a good deal about magic from reading children’s stories. Sunggyu bit his lip, forcing back that explanation. It sounded weird, unbelievable. It probably be best not to even bring it up, but it didn’t mean Sunggyu was going to back down either.

“Me? Desperate?” Sunggyu pointed to himself and laughed condescendingly. “I’m not the one dating a ghost because I can’t get with someone living.”

Instead of getting angrier like Sunggyu expect, the young wizard’s face melted, and a dreamy expression overtook his face. He laughed sweetly to himself, at whatever thoughts were crossing through his mind. “You don’t get to choose who you fall in love with,” Sungjong finally spoke. His voice was soft and gentle, which was a huge shift from the shouting he was doing earlier. He leaned back against a bookshelf and stared up at the ceiling, smiling. “These sort of things just…happen.” His else flittered down to the sitting wizard, but his chin was still raised. “But isn’t it bittersweet, like a tragic love story?” He looked back up, his smile growing. “He’s always with me, but at the same time, he’s so far away and in a different realm.”

Sunggyu dropped the book on the floor with a loud thud, snapping the other out of his reverie. He smirked. “I think you’ve been reading too many books,” he teased. “You can’t even touch him, Jjong. How long do you think that you can keep this up for?”

Sungjong brought down his gaze, fixing it with Sunggyu’s. He smiled cheekily. “Obviously you don’t know a lot about possession. We’ve _touched_ before.” Sunggyu winced, not liking how the other said that. Sungjong chuckled at his hyung’s reaction. He pushed himself from off of the bookshelf. “Besides, we’re only like this until I die. Then we can cross over together,” he spoke with an odd calm. He then put a finger to his lips as he walked away. “Maybe the book is over in the Dark Arts section,” he mused.

“W-what?! Die!” Sunggyu stood up quickly, stumbling over the stack of books Sungjong had made as he began to chase after the other. “Yah! Lee Sungjong!”

* * *

Woohyun chuckled at hearing a distressed Sunggyu yelling after Sungjong. He was happy that the other was having a hard time, especially after what the wizard had put him through the night before. The muggle’s eyes then drifted over to the ghost sitting across from him, still with a gloomy expression. He bit back the rest of his laughter and cleared his throat. The conversation with Myungsoo was stilted but enlightening. Myungsoo had passed away after falling ill with some new wizard malady. It had been a contagion invented by a dark wizard as biological warfare in the early stages of the Great Wizard War that had rocked the magical world. The cure had been shortly discovered after his death, and his blood had been crucial in finding the remedy. So Myungsoo considered his death worth it in the long run, saving the lives of hundreds of other wizards, including his younger brother.

However, the ghost did have one regret in his life: he had died in isolation, having been quarantined. His one wish, his grudge was to not be alone and to find someone to spend eternity with. He had found that in Sungjong, a cheerful wizard who was mature beyond his years. And although Myungsoo was significantly older than the other, he found himself learning much about life, and especially about love, from the other. Myungsoo had stuttered several times at this point, having a difficult time explaining his feelings for Sungjong in words. But the look on his face spoke volumes. The gloom had disappeared, and the light returned to his face. Even his eerie glow seemed brighter. It was obvious. With Sungjong, Myungsoo felt a sense of eternity.

But the light ran from the ghost again, and he was overwhelmed with darkness again. “Sorry,” Woohyun automatically apologized for his burst of laughter, being happy when the other was obviously sad.

Myungsoo snapped out of his own thoughts and shook his head. “Oh don’t be. I was just thinking…you have the opposite problem I do,” he stated, still glancing up at the second floor. “People can’t see you, but they can touch. People can see me, but they can’t touch.”

“Huh, I guess so,” Woohyun acknowledged, leaning back in his seat.

The ghost then looked down, his finger was tracing the pattern of the grain in the wood of the table between them. “I would give anything to have your problem…to have Jjongie touch me, actually me.” He glanced upwards at Woohyun sheepishly. “I sometimes possess people, but it’s just not the same.”

“Y-you possess people?!”

Myungsoo’s eyes grew wide, and he waved his hands, trying to swat away Woohyun’s worried. “Ah, no, no,” he denied. Then he bit his lips. “I mean, yes I do, but only people who want to be possessed.” He cocked his head. “There are some strange people.”

Woohyun scoffed. That was the understatement of the century. Woohyun’s world and the people in it were growing stranger by the day. But Woohyun knew that his new ghostly friend wasn’t malicious, creepy at times, but with a good heart. _He’s like Casper_. Then, Woohyun sighed, reflecting on what the other had said earlier. He had to disagree. Touches to him meant nothing anymore. Most of them were accidental grazes of his skin. But just one look, one second of eye contact now would be so much to him. “Myungsoo-ah, never underestimate the value of a look,” Woohyun stated. “Imagine if Sungjong never looked you in the eye again.”

Myungsoo blinked in thought for a few seconds and then adamantly shook his head. “Uh, I wouldn’t like that at all,” he admitted. “Not at all.”

Woohyun let out another deep breath. Sunggyu said that this conversation would ‘help.’ _Help with what?_ All Woohyun had learned was that his problem was worse than a ghost’s. _But at least I had a sympathetic listener. Lord knows I wouldn’t get that from Sunggyu._

“Hey, we’re leaving,” a familiar voice called out. _Speak of the devil._ Woohyun turned to see Sunggyu walking up to the table with Sungjong bouncing behind him. “They didn’t have what I was looking for.”

“What are you going to do now, hyung?” Sungjong asked, his brows knitting in worry.

Sunggyu put his hands deep in his pockets and puffed out a breath of air from his cheeks before grimacing. “I guess that I have no choice, but to go there tomorrow.” Sungjong nodded understanding.

But Woohyun didn’t. He stood up from the table. “Where are we going?” he asked.

“Right now. We’re going to sneak into your house to pick up some stuff. We’re going out of town,” Sunggyu announced and began to walk out of the library with urgency in his step.

“What?! Home?!” Woohyun jogged after the other. “And where are we going tomorrow?”

Sunggyu turned towards the other. “It’s a surprise.” He then yanked on the collar of the bathrobe. “You have to take this off now. We’re going back outside,” he said, his hand drifting down to the tie.

Woohyun quickly jumped away. “Yah! I can do it on my own,” he snapped back. Then he looked at Sungjong and Myungsoo, whose eyes were fastened onto him. He gulped. “No one look!”

“No one can see anything!”

“I don’t care!” Surprisingly, the three all turned their backs and closed their eyes, respecting Woohyun’s privacy. “O-okay, you can look now.”

Sunggyu ripped the robe out of the other’s hand. “You done being a pansy?” he teased. “Let’s go.” He turned around and waved at the other two. “Bye, Jjong and Myungsoo.”

“Bye, hyung! Bye, Woohyun! See you later!”

“Haha very funny!”

* * *

Woohyun pressed his face against the window of his parents’ place. Squinting through the glass(he had to take out his contacts earlier), he could barely make out their forms as they scurried about the restaurant to serve their customers. Normally, his dad would remain in the back cooking, but because they were short on staff (due to Woohyun’s absence), his father was out interacting with the customers. Woohyun frowned. His belly grew heavy. _This isn’t right. I should be there_.

Then he felt a hand thread through his hair, pulling him backwards. “Stop being creepy. You can see your breath on the glass,” Sunggyu chided and let go.

Woohyun rubbed his sore head, frowning even deeper. “You could’ve just told me, jerk,” he growled.

Sunggyu smiled a little. “You’re like a puppy. You respond better to actions than words,” he argued back. Woohyun laughed, noticing that although Sunggyu’s words were biting, he was pinning down the microphone again between his shoulder and cheek. And it was hard to take anyone seriously with a face contorted like that. Sunggyu lifted his head and frowned, not knowing what elicited the laughing from the other. In the end, he just continued to do what he did best, barking orders. “Don’t you have a back door to go through? We can’t wait outside here all day.”

Woohyun nodded, chewing on his lip. “Yea, one just around the corner. It’ll probably take me 15 minutes to get everything and to sneak in and out.” He smirked and walked up to the other side of Sunggyu. He ruffled the wizard’s hair (beanie included). “Now why don’t you stay here like a good boy? Okay?” He chuckled and ran away before Sunggyu’s kick made contact with him (and now he was just aimlessly kicking around him. Woohyun was lucky that the other had such slow reflexes). “No, bad wizard. Stay!” Woohyun commanded with a chuckle.

“Just shut up and go already!”

It took Woohyun only 5 minutes to stuff all of the necessities (actual clothes, underwear, phone charger, his old round glasses, and a last minute decision, a hat and mask so that Sunggyu would stop calling him headless) into a duffle bag. The rest of the time he spent trying to sneakily move the duffle bag across the floor without drawing suspicion. He was about to make it out the door unscathed, but something made him stop. The door to the kitchen swung open.

“Do you think he’s okay? He never is gone this long without talking.”

“Eh, honey, you’re worrying too much. This is what boys his age do.”

Woohyun pressed his back against the wall near the fridge, kicking his duffle bag next to it, hoping that it would go unseen like him. He held his breath as his parents walked up closer to him. They were within arm’s reach now, and the distress on his mother’s face was evident.

“He always calls,” she said under her breath. One hand resting on her cheek while the other dug through the pocket of her apron. She pulled out her phone and looked at the screen. She sighed again. “He hasn’t responded to any of my messages either.”

Woohyun gulped down the bile of guilt building up inside of him. His battery had died last night when Sunggyu was busying exploring ‘the muggles’ version of magic’ (or so he called it. He became quite addicted to Candy Crush in a very short amount of time).

His father put his large hand on his mother’s shoulder. “Don’t worry. He’ll call,” he reassured her. Then he put his other hand on her other shoulder and began massaging her. “He’ll show up tomorrow to help us out. He’s probably just taking the day off. Probably hung-over. He handles his alcohol like you do,” he teased.

His wife finally giggled and playfully slapped at one of the hands. But she quickly returned to her worried mask and sighed again. “I hope he shows up tomorrow. I don’t think I can last another day like this.” Woohyun noticed that she was rubbing her hands. The pain and stiffness must have returned. Woohyun’s vision then became more blurred. Tears were forming in his eyes.

“Mom…”

His mother turned towards him with a frightened expression. “Did you hear that?”

Woohyun’s father lifted up his head, looking out into the dining room. “Yea, it looks like table six wants more beer. Coming!” he called out to the costumer and walked out of the kitchen with a bottle of beer.

His mother however, stayed behind and narrowed her eyes right where Woohyun was. “That’s not what I meant,” she whispered. Woohyun looked down at his feet, unable to look at her. He heard her sigh. “God, please let him be okay,” she prayed and walked back into the dining room.

“I’m sorry.”

Right as Woohyun walked out of the kitchen, Sunggyu was there, acting as impatient as ever. “About time,” he complained, walking over to pick up the duffle bag. “Aish! What did you put in here? I thought I told you only the necessities.”

“Sorry, I don’t want to wear a bathrobe, and I need to wear shoes. My feet hurt,” Woohyun answered, trying hard to fight back his urge to cry.

“Hey,” Sunggyu stopped, his hand hovering in the air until it found Woohyun’s shoulder. “Are you okay? Did you get seen in there?”

“No,” Woohyun replied with a slight sniffle. “My own parents didn’t even recognize me.”

The wizard glanced at the other curiously. “Okay,” he relented. He began walking again. “You’re going to like what we do next.”

“What are we doing, hyung?”

“Eating,” Sunggyu answered with perhaps the happiest smile Woohyun had ever seen on his face.

“About f***ing time!”

Sunggyu pushed whatever part of Woohyun was in his reach casually like he was just stretching. “Yah! Ghosts don’t cuss,” he said quietly through gritted teeth.

“I’m not a ghost!”

* * *

The first thing Woohyun did while he was at the restaurant was charge his phone and answer his mother’s messages. There was 23 of them, almost one for every hour he was gone. Then he called them. That was bit of a struggle to figure out. Sunggyu had to put the call on speaker phone (or rather Woohyun did because Sunggyu kept trying to open up the game again). The wizard covered his mouth, pretending to say all of the words that Woohyun was saying.

Although it was good to actually speak to them again, Woohyun didn’t feel good. He had to concoct a strange and elaborate lie that would have him gone for an indeterminate amount of time. He ended up saying that he had been accepted as an apprentice at the local French restaurant, and the chef was willing to teach him if only he lived in a dorm with the other ‘apprentices.’ Then his mother insisted on coming over and bringing his clothes and such. Woohyun argued that he had to be cloistered for a period of time so that he could concentrate on cooking and nothing else, and that this phone was already against the rules. And at that, his parents grew flustered, wished him luck, sent their love, and hung up. Woohyun closed out of the phone call with a sad sigh.

Sunggyu on the other hand cheered because it meant he could play Candy Crush again. Woohyun hit him for that.

While Sunggyu was playing on the phone, the owner of the shop walked up to him. “Oh, Sunggyu-goon? Here again so soon?” Sunggyu looked up and nodded happily at the old lady. “Do you want the usual?”

“Yes please!” he immediately responded, but then he remembered Woohyun. “Oh wait! Make it double!”

The owner raised a curious brow. “Double? Omo! You must be hungry.” She giggled at the wizard before she went to place his order in.

“So is this a wizard place?” Woohyun asked hopefully.

His hopes were dashed with a shake of the wizard’s head. “Nope muggle,” he hushed back. “But they have the best grade of beef here at the lowest price.”

“Beef?!” Woohyun said too loud, earning a natsy glare from Sunggyu. But the muggle couldn’t help it. He was shocked. He half expected Sunggyu to take him out for something cheap. But as Woohyun surveyed the restaurant, it was obviously a barbecue joint. And every patron appeared to have the delicious red meat on their plates. Woohyun blinked furiously as he stared back at Sunggyu. Not only did he take him here, but he also ordered double the amount. “Hyung…do you like me?”

Sunggyu scoffed. “Don’t be so full of yourself. I just felt like eating it.”

“Sure,” Woohyun teased nudging the other.

Sunggyu glared at his chest (always the chest. Woohyun wasn’t _that_ short). “I’m serious. Now get under the table.”

“Hyung…”

Sunggyu let out a frustrated sigh, not wanting to deal with a stubborn not-really-a-ghost anymore. “It’s the only way I can feed you without it being weird,” he spoke, his lips barely moving.

And at that, Woohyun happily slid under the table. After he was entirely under, he turned his fists into paws and rested them on Sunggyu’s knees like a dog begging for scraps. The wizard automatically kicked him away. Woohyun chuckled. Sunggyu was really slow. He didn’t even touch him.

But then he remembered something that he was curious about back at the bookstore. “Hey, hyung,” he whispered to the other, placing his head on the spot next to the other’s thighs on the bench. “You’re not really going to make the Philosopher’s Stone, are you?”

He saw Sunggyu groan and put the earbuds back into his ears. This time, he brought the microphone to his lips with his hands (he had seen some muggle do it, and was embarrassed immediately by his old method). “Why? Was that in your books too?” he asked. His face was buried in his hands.

Woohyun tilted his head against Sunggyu’s thigh. “Actually, yea it was. But I was thinking more along the lines of something else,” he took in a deep breath before continuing. “Humankind cannot gain anything without first giving something in return. To obtain, something of equal value must be lost,” he recited from deep within his memory bank. “Isn’t that the law of Equivalent Exchange? And the Stone…it would cost a lot.”

“That’s…not…entirely wrong,” Sunggyu spoke out slowly. He took his hands from his face and began picking up his chopsticks, getting ready to eat. “But it isn’t right either. It’s just…complicated. That’s all.” He then chuckled a bit. “If that’s not from your books, then what is it from?”

“Fullmetal Alchemist. It’s an anime,” Woohyun stated, almost embarrassed until…

“What’s an anime?”

Woohyun had to hold back the roaring laughter threatening to burst out. “You don’t know? Really?” Sunggyu did a swift shake of his head as he put the napkin on his lap. “It’s a cartoon,” the muggle explained. “From Japan.”

“Would I like it?”

Woohyun was silent for a few seconds, not expecting that question.  He was so used to Sunggyu randomly dropping topics whenever he pleased that when the wizard continued a line of conversation for more than a few beats, it was surprising. But then the perfect answer came to Woohyun’s mind: “Yea, hyung, you would. Especially the _weird_ ones. Hentai!” He began to laugh quietly. “Get it, hyung? Get it?”

Sunggyu frowned, shifting in his seat. “No I don’t.”

“Do wizards have porn?”

This time when Sunggyu kicked him, Woohyun couldn’t dodge him. The wizard’s hand was creeping down to his pocket, where his wand was. Woohyun gulped, staring at it intensely.  Then Sunggyu let his hand  drop. “You are so lucky that we’re in public,” he grumbled.

Luckily, the owner came just in time. Woohyun could hear her setting the heavy dishes down onto the table with a delightful thud. He also knew that it looked appetizing based on Sunggyu’s excited movements in his legs, squirming like a 5 year-old about to eat cake. Also Sunggyu almost immediately handed Woohyun a bowl of rice under the table along with his spoon, which the muggle began to consume quite ravenously (not the spoon, but the rice). “Ahjummah! Can you bring me another bowl?” Sunggyu begged the elderly woman. Woohyun rolled his eyes at the cute tone he was using.

“Omo! You finished it already, Sunggyu-goon? I swear, you kids these days just inhale everything. Wait a second. I’ll give you another.”

“Thank you!” the wizard chirped, and Woohyun watched the lady’s steps as they fled from the table. Curious, he poked his head out from underneath the table to look at the spread. His jaw dropped. There was enough beef on the table to serve a party of four large men built like hippos. Woohyun studied the table in amazement. _Wow!_ _He eats half of this on his own…Wait a second. I’m going to eat half of this!_ He realized. He tried to calculate how much empty space in his stomach he had available. _Not enough. Not near enough._

“Here’s your rice, and here’s some extra vegetables,” Woohyun heard the old lady return and ducked back under the table. “You need to eat something healthy, Sunggyu,” she warmly chided and then left.

“But I am,” Sunggyu muttered under his breath. Woohyun heard shuffling of the plates above him. The wizard was probably preparing the beef, and his mouth was watering at the prospect. But then he was faced with a plate full of leafy greens and onions. “You eat these,” Sunggyu ordered. Now Woohyun really felt like the dog under the table that children feed unwanted scraps to.

But he took the plate regardless. “You’re supposed to cook the onions, you know,” he combated. However, he could hear chopsticks and tongs in motion above him, showing that Sunggyu was busying himself with the meat and not paying attention to the invisible man (as usual). Then a small plate, filled with pieces of beef was handed to him, which unfortunately, in spite of all his expectations, made Woohyun gag. The beef was nearly raw, having just merely touced a flame for a second or two. Blood was dripping from off the plate and unto his hands. Woohyun then proceeded to wipe the mess on Sunggyu’s jeans. “Hyung, it’s still raw. Do you even know how to prepare this?” he asked, poking his head from out of the table to get a good look at the other, his head brushing against the older’s thigh. Sunggyu looked down sheepishly quickly bringing into his mouth the piece of meat that was dangling from his mouth as he chewed. It was completely raw. “Apparently not.” Woohyun got up from under the table and sat onto the bench next to Sunggyu. His hand covered the wizard’s that were clutching on the pair of tongs. “Let me cook it.”

Sunggyu elbowed him away. “No. Get back down.”

Woohyun grabbed his wrist and slinked his hand downwards until it engulfed the other. “Hyung, you’ll  make us sick. I’ll do it,” he insisted. With the tongs, he guided Sunggyu’s hands to pick up the nearly raw meat and place it back onto the grill.

“I don’t get sick,” Sunggyu objected, but allowed Woohyun to guide his hand like a puppet-master.

“Fine, then you’ll make me sick,” the muggle conceded. He glanced back at Sunggyu who was still remaining quiet passive and with only one earbud still in his ear. The wizard was staring at the tongs carefully as they turned the meat over, cooking it properly. “Aigoo, our Sunggyu is being very obedient right now,” Woohyun praised in a motherly tone.

Sunggyu pushed him out of the booth. “Shut up and get back under the table.”

* * *

After eating their fill (and yes, all of that meat), the two trekked back to the apothecary, which was only a few blocks away. Woohyun was thankful that the wizard’s house was so close by. With each step, he could feel the undigested food jostle in his stomach, and all he wanted to do (and all there was left to do) was to sleep. And so when they arrived, the first thing Woohyun did was change into clothes. The weather outside had become chilling with the setting sun, so he may have overdressed a bit to compensate, wearing a sweatsuit and tying the hoodie securely around his head. Then he finished his ‘glamorous’ ensemble with his round glasses from his childhood. And now he could see clearly and was warm finally. He smiled as he turned to Sunggyu. The other looked him straight in the eyes now, finally knowing where they were. That moment was probably the highlight of the muggle’s day, which either tells you how well his day went or how much he had yearned for simple eye-contact.

He was about to dart up the stairs into Sunggyu’s bedroom, when the other yanked him back by the collar of his shirt. He lead the invisible boy into the backroom and pointed to a large couch in it. “You’re sleeping here tonight. There’s no House Elves here, and best of all, no me. Good night!” he waved and went upstairs into his room.

Woohyun laid slowly down on the couch. It was a lot more comfortable than the bed from the previous night and had significantly fewer lumps. He brought the blanket up to his chest as he got comfortable in the cushions. He was warm, thanks to the sweatsuit. And he was also clean, freshly showered. The backroom was even quiet. You could hear a pin drop. So all in all, it was amounting to be a better night than last and a lot more restful sleep.

Only thing was, Woohyun couldn’t sleep, not with his mind nagging him about the lies he told his parents. The suffering they’d undergo in his absence. And what if they talked to Kibum? That kid would definitely puncture holes into his fabrications. Woohyun reckoned that his lies would fall apart in a few days, and he could already see the disappointed faces of his parents when he couldn’t offer a better explanation than “I’m sorry.”

Then he remembered the look on his mother’s face that afternoon and the swelling that had returned in her joints. Woohyun felt like he had done that to her. He had forgotten to bring home the salve for her, and now, to boot, her hands were working in overtime to compensate for the loss of her son’s work. The guilt overwhelmed him quickly. He could feel it filling him up until it finally manifested into tears. “Mom, I’m sorry,” he choked out a soft sob.

“Lumnos.”

The backroom was suddenly lit by a small orb of light, radiating from the tip of Sunggyu’s white wand. Woohyun immediately rolled over onto his stomach, smothering his tears (and curses) into his pillow. “Woohyun,” Sunggyu called out to him in an annoyed voice. “You’re crying. Why?”

Woohyun propped his chin on the pillow, freeing his mouth. “No, I’m not,” he lied.

Sunggyu walked around the couch to where the muggle’s head was and crouched down until their eyes aligned. “Don’t lie,” he urged. “I could hear you blubbering from my room, and I can see the tears,” he argued as he brought a finger to Woohyun’s cheek, gathering a fallen tear. Sunggyu looked at his now glistening finger, grimaced, and wiped it on his shirt.

Woohyun sat up and scooted away from the other, retreating to the other side of the couch.“Fine. I’m crying,” he confessed. “What of it?”

Sunggyu pulled himself upright with a soft grunt. The light from his wand cast an eerie glow on his face. “Stop,” he commanded.

“Heh,” Woohyun scoffed. “You really know how to comfort people. It’s a real wonder why they didn’t let you teach little children. If they got homesick, you’d probably say that their parents were glad that they were gone.” Sunggyu mentally cursed at himself for letting Woohyun wheedle that piece of information from him with his non-stop questions. He had regretted saying it the moment it slipped through his lips. He was going to come back with a few biting words, but then he heard the muggle snivel and saw him trying to discretely wipe away his tears with the pillow in his lap. So Sunggyu held in the choice words as he sat down next to the other on the couch.

“They’re not. You’re crying because you’re homesick, right? Your parents miss you too, but I bet that they’re still fine. Sad but fine. They sounded okay on the phone,” the wizard offered condolence.

“I’m not crying because of them,” Woohyun denied, not wanting to seem like a child to the other. The wizard sent him a knowing glare. Woohyun sighed and admitted, “Okay, I am. What if I’m like this forever? What if I can’t ever see them again? What if they can never see me?” _What if my life is over?_ His tears renewed with a vengeance, and a noticeable sob was emitted.

He felt a hand grip his shoulder tightly. “I’ll figure out,” Sunggyu said confidently with an affirming nod of his head. “I have to. And if worse comes to worse, and I…can’t. Then you’ll be my burden.”

“You’ll take care of me?” Woohyun asked, raising his head to the other.

Sunggyu nodded, staring right into the other. “I did this. And now I have to live with the consequences.”

Woohyun sniffed loudly, trying to rein in his emotions, but it wasn’t working. It wasn’t enough. “Can you take care of me now?” he asked softly.

“Huh? H-“ The words were caught in the wizard’s throat as Woohyun hugged him tightly, like Sunggyu was his liferaft and he was a survivor of a shipwreck, like his life depended on it.

“Just stay with me for awhile…like this. I…just need to feel…real.”

Sunggyu wrapped his arms around the other and patted his shaking back gently.“You are real. Hyun, you are real,” he repeated over and over again until the message sunk in.

And later Sunggyu didn’t even protest when Woohyun followed him into his bedroom and crawled underneath the covers. And the wizard didn’t even flinch when Woohyun crossed the unmarked barrier between them, just leaning onto the other’s body, wanting recognition, contact. No, Sunggyu only let out a deep sigh as his hand found the top of Woohyun’s head and stroked it until the boy fell asleep. He knew that the other needed and craved it after being ignored by the world for the entire day. And maybe Sunggyu needed it too.

* * *

 “Yah, wake up. We’re leaving.”

Woohyun slowly opened his eyes, seeing the wizard roughly shake him awake. He turned over to look at the clock. It was seven in the morning. He quickly turned to face the other, not believing that the wizard was awake so early. Sunggyu shook him again more roughly. “Yah! You awake?”

Woohyun pushed him away. “Get off. I’m awake. I’m awake,” he grumbled, rubbing the sleep away from his eyes and stretching. “Why are you up so early? Where are we going? Jeju?”

“No,” Sunggyu answered distractedly as he was throwing a bunch of his rumpled clothes into a duffle bag. “We’re going to Hogwarts.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here is the reason why this story has a higher rating: Woohyun is naked, butt-naked.
> 
> Poor kid.
> 
> Should it be higher??


	3. The truth. It is a beautiful and terrible thing, and should therefore be treated with great caution.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hogwarts, Hogwarts, Hoggy Warty Hogwarts  
> Teach us something please!

 “You lied to me, hyung. I hate you,” Woohyun spoke through gritted teeth bitterly. He shifted awkwardly in his spot, feeling uncomfortable, but immediately froze soon after. The muggle was in an strange situation: sitting naked on the wizard’s lap on the subway. Well, not exactly. He was sitting on the messenger bag, and when he first sat down on it, he heard Sunggyu grumble about having to burn the bag later. But Woohyun didn’t feel guilty. The wizard deserved it for toying with him, dashing his dreams.

Sunggyu whispered harshly back, the earbuds affixed in his ears, “That’s because you didn’t let me finish. It’s not my fault you jumped to the wrong conclusion. Now stop moving. It’s weird.”

Woohyun tightened his fists on his knees. He would like nothing more than to exchange some choice words with the other, but he couldn’t. He had to play ghost again, be ignored by the world, and act like he didn’t exist. And worst of all, they weren’t going to Hogwarts. Well, not really.

* * *

That morning, after Sunggyu announced that they were going to Hogwarts, Woohyun jumped excitedly up on the bed and started bouncing on the springs. “Really? We’re going!” he exclaimed. His life-long, and once impossible dream was coming into fruition. He was going to THE school of witchcraft and wizardry. He was going to walk down the halls that Harry and his friends did. He was going to visit Dumbledore’s voice (or barge in. It didn’t matter. He was invisible anyways, so he could go anywhere…even the forbidden forest!). He fell onto the bed with a happy hum and began rolling around in the sheets. A sudden thought invaded his brain, and he shoot straight up and panicked. “Hyung, we have to go back to my house. I don’t have my passport.”

“Passport?” Sunggyu repeated, staring at the other curiously as he romped about in the bed. “Where do you think we’re going?”

Woohyun’s heart stopped, suddenly wondering if he had misheard. “Hogwarts, right? In England?” he asked sheepishly.

Sunggyu snorted a few times before bursting out into a peal of laughter. “How could we smuggle you on a plane, idiot?” he sputtered out between laughs.

“W-we’re not going? But I thought you said…”

While wiping the happy tears forming in his eyes, the wizard interrupted, “We’re going to the branch, here in Korea. Haha, oh God! You thought we were going to THE Hogwarts?! That place has been destroyed for years.”

“WHAT?!” Woohyun could feel his heartbreaking. Not only was he not going to his fantasy school, but he could never go there. And so the school remained just that, a fantasy. He brought a pillow closer to his chest. This magical world he was living in really and truly sucked.

He felt the bed sink down next to him. Sunggyu had sat down. “Y-you didn’t know,” he was mildly surprised. “But I thought you read the books?”

Woohyun breathed in deeply, inhaling the scent of the pillow, which was oddly calming. “I did, but it didn’t say anything about…” he couldn’t bring himself to finish the sentence.

“The series was about the revival of the Great Wizard War, right? At least that’s what I gathered.” Sunggyu’s voice was strangely gentle, like when he had talked to Sungjong about his shop. And that made Woohyun feel a little childish and naive, but he still nodded, answering the question. “The school was destroyed then, and they didn’t really recover. Plus the spot was filled with ghosts from both sides of the war, so they thought it best to establish a new school elsewhere.” His hand began patting Woohyun’s head which was still covered with a hoodie. “I’m sorry, Hyun.”

Woohyun shook the hand from his head. He wasn’t in the mood to be treated like a child. “So…it’s gone,” his voice was barely audible.

Sunggyu backed away and stood up from the bed. “Yea,” he answered grabbing his messenger bag and stuffing every possible thing in there, even things that shouldn’t even fit inside like cauldron. “But before it was, the grandchildren of the four founders went around the globe, establishing other schools. The one we’re going to is one of them. I’m told that it’s a lot like the original,” he ended, shooting a cautious glance at the muggle huddled on the bed. Sunggyu threw his messenger at the other, successfully taking him out of his gloom. “Put what you need in here. We need to leave soon, or we’ll miss the train. I’ll be downstairs to send Owllie off before we go.”

Woohyun was dumbfounded for a few seconds, reeling from the sudden hit. It wasn’t until after Sunggyu was out of the bedroom when he finally came to. “Hedwig! Her name is Hedwig!” he shouted after him. He then grumbled as he looked down at the messenger bag in his lap. “Put what you need in here,” he said in a high pitched voice. He looked around the room and giggled mischievously. As far as he knew, the bag had no limit as to what it could hold. After he was done, there was barely anything left in Sunggyu’s room, save for the furniture.

When he was done, he dropped the bag in front of Sunggyu (who was cleaning Hedwig’s cage) with a loud thud. The wizard looked down at the bag. “What the Hell did you put in there?” His eyes glanced up at the other and his brows met in the middle of his forehead. “And what are you wearing? Are you planning on robbing someone?”

Woohyun pulled down the mask from his mouth. It was a bit suffocating, especially with the warm summer air surrounding him. “I can go out like this, hyung. I look normal, so I don’t have to walk around nude anymore. Smart right?” he bragged. The muggle was completely covered from head to toe. He was wearing jeans, a hoodie with the hood pulled tightly around his face, large sunglasses, and a mask. He had checked himself out in the mirror earlier and save for a small stretch between the lip of the hood and the brim of the glasses, not a span of his transparent skin could be seen. He was hotter than Hell, of course, but this way, he could go out in public like a regular human being.

“Do you think you’re a celebrity?” Sunggyu joked, washing his hands after cleaning. “Take it off. I’m not going out with you like that.”

“But hyung!”

“Off,” he repeated a little more forcefully. “You’re going to die of heatstroke,” he mumbled quickly and quietly, almost went unnoticed by Woohyun. “And this way, we don’t have to pay for a ticket,” he stated with a proud smile.

Woohyun pouted as he began to take off his clothes again. “I swear, you must get a rise out of this,” the muggle complained, tossing each and every item to the wizard so that he could put it in the bag.

“Just a little.”

* * *

But now on the subway, the wizard was regretting his decision. He hadn’t thought about the logistics about riding on the subway, where the invisible boy was going to sit or stand. The only spot available was Sunggyu’s lap. It was unbearable for the both of them, and Woohyun couldn’t stop squirming, which made Sunggyu’s bag look like it was moving on its own. The wizard prayed that no one else could see it.

The worse part about it was the closeness. All he could smell was Woohyun’s scent with each and every breath he took. Sunggyu could see the sweat forming and trailing down the other’s back, and feel the warmth radiating from the muggle. Sunggyu tried his best to keep a composed face, so he closed his eyes and pretended to be sleeping. But there was still a noticeable blush creeping onto his cheeks.

Woohyun, besides feeling uncomfortable and exposed, wasn’t having as bad of a time. He was instead, finally taking advantage of being invisible and making faces at the other passengers on the subway. Also he could blatantly check out anybody he wanted. So all in all, it wasn’t too bad. Then he noticed two girls whispering to each other and looking at him. Woohyun smiled and waved at them, but they didn’t wave back. Instead they were giggling to each other and kept whispering. That’s when it hit him. They weren’t looking at him (duh), but they were admiring Sunggyu behind him. Woohyun frowned at that, feeling a little jealous.

Then he felt something hit him in the middle of his back. Woohyun craned his neck to see that Sunggyu’s head had fallen onto his back and that he had completely fallen asleep, feeling the deep and steady breaths brush past his bare skin. _Figures. He woke up really early_. Woohyun then quickly leaned back, causing the wizard’s head to slam against the window.

“Ow!” he yelped, rubbing the back of his head. The girls across from them began laughing hysterically, and Woohyun did his best to hold in his own. Sunggyu discretely kicked Woohyun’s legs, acting like he was stretching.

Woohyun bit his tongue hard, trying to keep in his own yelp. He then glared at the other. When he was allowed to be ‘visible’ again, Sunggyu was going to get it. “I don’t know when we’re getting off,” Woohyun lowly whispered, explaining his actions.

Sunggyu looked up at the map. “Shit! Now!” He jumped up, making Woohyun crash onto the ground. Sunggyu somehow managed to grab the other’s arm (no longer caring about looking ‘normal’) and pulled Woohyun up so that they could exit the doors before they closed. He quickly exited off the subway, dragging the other with him. Once he stepped onto the platform, he let go a sigh of relief. “We made it…right?”

“Yea, I’m here.” Woohyun wrested his arm from the other’s grip. “Now what?”

“Now we catch the next train,” Sunggyu announced and began making his way to the next platform. However, after looking around the station and noticing the rush, the crowd being thicker than the day before in the streets, the wizard suddenly stopped. “Hold onto me, so I know you’re with me,” he said as he offered his arm to the other.

Woohyun raised an eyebrow and pinched the fabric at the elbow of the elder’s shirt. “Okay,” he responded after securing an anchoring on the other. “Let’s go.”

And it was a good thing Woohyun held onto to him because Sunggyu started to weave in and out of the crowds, narrowly missing people, which meant Woohyun would bump into them (it was alright though because they all assumed that it was Sunggyu). His hand slowly moved from the elbow down to Sunggyu’s wrists, where he had a better hold. Woohyun grimaced. He felt an awful like a heroine in a Kdrama, being dragged around roughly by her love interest. He was sick of feeling weak and dependent on the other. He was sick of not having control in his life.

He was also sick of Sunggyu randomly stopping without warning as he slammed into the wizard’s back again. “We’re here,” he announced quietly, nodding over to the janitor’s closet.

Woohyun smiled. He knew exactly what to do. He dropped the other’s wrists and began to walk towards the door. If this was like the book series, he’d be able to walk right through like Platform 9 ¾ and several other places. But like everything else he’d experienced recently, it was nothing like Harry Potter. He crashed into the door and fell down.

Sunggyu looked down at Woohyun as he took a large step, trying to avoid hitting the muggle, towards the door. He turned the knob and laughed. “You’ve been invisible for so long that you think you’re a real ghost?” he teased. “Get up. The train will be here in five minutes.”

“Stupid door. Stupid magic,” Woohyun grumbled as he followed Sunggyu into the janitor’s closet. It was completely dark. “Where’s the train?” he asked. He heard a slight murmur, and the tip of Sunggyu’s wand began to glow. He walked into the middle of the room and tugged on the pull string attached to the lone lightbulb in the room. It didn’t even turn on. “Well, that’s useful,” he remarked sarcastically.

Sunggyu turned to him. “What’s it supposed to do?” he asked in all seriousness. Then the floor beneath them began to shake. Woohyun looked down only to see that the floor had vanished. He instinctively grabbed hold onto the wizard as the two were sucked into the vacuum that had formed underneath them. His eyes were screwed shut, and he felt his stomach drop like it does when riding a roller coaster.

The muggle felt Sunggyu untangle the hands around his waist. “It’s okay to open your eyes now,” he said turning around to face Woohyun. Woohyun opened one eye slowly and saw the smug smile on the wizard’s face. “They were closed, right? You’re such a baby,” he lightly teased.

Woohyun ignored the comment and opened his other eye, looking around. They were no longer in a subway station. There were train tracks laid out in front of them. Red brick walls were surrounding them. A cheerful light flittering in. This…this was exactly like platform 9 ¾. Woohyun’s face immediately lit up. He whooped and began to run around the platform.

Sunggyu was looking about, confused, trying to follow the zig-zagging path of the invisible boy. His hand tightened its hold on his bag. “Hyun…don’t you want to put on some clothes?”

“Forget clothes! Look at this place, hyung! It’s perfect!” he exclaimed, happy that something finally met his expectations. Regardless of what he just said, he still ran back towards the baffled wizard. He yanked on the bag excitedly and begged in a cute voice, “Gimme. Gimme.” Sunggyu just blinked and handed the bag over. Woohyun unzipped it and put his head in the bag. All he could see was a deep cavern of nothingness. “Where did everything go?”

“Oh,” Sunggyu snapped out of it. He stepped closer and brought out his wand. “Accio…Woohyun’s clothes.” And despite the apprehension in his voice, the clothes still flew out of the bag. “Get dressed. The train will be here soon,” the normal authoritative tone returned to his voice.

“Okay!”

Shortly after Woohyun haphazardly threw on his t-shirt, jeans, glasses, and hat, the beautiful black train arrived with ‘Hogwarts Express’ written on it in large, elegant gold letters. Woohyun’s smile was so wide, his face was threatening to rip in half. Sunggyu showed the train passes to the conductor, and the both of them boarded it. The train was nearly empty. A few other passengers had boarded the train from previous stations. Sunggyu nodded and waved to them as they passed the compartments. He even greeted a few of them by name. It was strange to see him acting so friendly after being so calloused in the muggle realm. _Maybe it’s all just a defense mechanism, to scare people way so that he wouldn’t get found out._

They settled in the compartment, sitting on complete opposite sides. Woohyun had felt like he had been to clingy to the elder lately. They just needed some space. Unfortunately, Sunggyu had taken the window seat, and Woohyun was relegated to the seat by the door. The muggle was still looking at the window out of the corner of his eye. If only he could get a better look, he could probably find out where they were going and the location of the school. Then later on he could…

“You know, you can sit over here too,” the wizard broke into the other’s thoughts, his own eyes still glued to the window. “I mean…if you want.”

Woohyun didn’t even answer and slid down the bench towards the window. Why did he care before? This was a once in a life-time opportunity. And the scenery was beautiful, watching the gently rolling hills turn into mountains and the trees growing thicker in the forefront. “This is pretty far away,” Woohyun remarked.

“That’s why we had to wake up early,” Sunggyu responded with a yawn. He moved his legs up onto the bench and slid his back up against the window, closing his eyes. “Wake me up when we arrive…please.”

Woohyun’s eyes darted towards the other. _Please? Is he trying to be cute?_ Woohyun smiled. He directed his eyes back to the window. For the first time in days, he actually felt relaxed and happy. He put his hand against the cool glass, trying to trace the peaks of the heightening mountains. _Oh…that’s right._ He couldn’t see it. For one second, he had forgotten that he was invisible.

His ride went fairly well. He was able to charm the woman with the refreshment cart into giving him a free sandwich and pumpkin juice. She thought he was fascinating and was clapping in delight when he took off his shirt and saw, well, nothing (which was funny because he was used to getting a similar reaction with his abs). He had gotten a sandwich for Sunggyu too, but since the wizard kept sleeping, he ate that one too. It tasted even better than his own. But eventually the ride came to its end, right as a large lake came into sight. And right behind that lake, was a castle. It was just like Sunggyu said, it looked just like Hogwarts.

“Hyung,” Woohyun leaned over and gently shook the wizard by the shoulder. Sunggyu’s head rolled over onto his shoulder where Woohyun’s hand was. The elder grumbled about wanting to sleep some more. Woohyun brought hi s other hand up and began to slap the wizard’s cheek. “Yah! Get up. We’re here.”

Sunggyu slowly opened his eyes and stared at Woohyun, looking him right in the eyes through the glasses. The muggle still wasn’t used to it, eye contact. Even the refreshment cart lady was so overwhelmed with the invisible boy, not knowing where to look, that their eyes never met. And apparently, Sunggyu still wasn’t used to waking up to seeing floating hat and glasses. He stared for a little too long before quietly saying, “Get out of my face.”

Woohyun tsked and pulled away, watching the elder get up with a groan. “You ready yet, Grandpa?” he lightly insulted as he watched the wizard stretch and shoot the other a killer glare. But Woohyun didn’t care. He was bouncing around on the balls of his feet, amped up and ready to go explore the world outside of the train. “Come on, hyung. Hurry up!” But Sunggyu didn’t move any faster; in fact, he seemed to move slower, almost as if it was intentional (actual Woohyun was sure it was). “Fine. I’m leaving without you,” Woohyun announced as he darted out of the cabin.

“Y-yah!” Sunggyu yelled after him. Good things never happened when he left Woohyun alone.

Five minutes later, he finally caught up with his invisible friend, dragging him away from the shore of the lake. “Do you have a death wish?” Sunggyu shouted, yanking on Woohyun’s collar. The other was trying to squirm away from him.

“But, hyung, I thought I saw a mermaid! A real mermaid!” Woohyun exclaimed, tearing himself away. “I think it wanted to play.”

Sunggyu drug his hand down his face in frustration. “No, idiot, it wanted to drown you,” he explained, seeing the other freeze as he was about to dip his foot into the water. He watched the shoe slowly pull back from the water. “Weren’t they in your books too?”

Woohyun gulped. They were, and they weren’t entirely good in there either. He took in a deep breath. He needed to rein in his excitement and not be so impulsive, to stop and think for one bloody second before acting. He could do that. He was a rational human being. He wasn’t five anymore. He could control himself. Then he caught something out of the corner of his eyes. “Oh! That’s a thestral, isn’t it?” he asked as he ran after the carriage flying straight towards them.

Sunggyu scratched the back of his head. “How does he know all of these things?” he mused. Then the wizard walked up to the skeletal, winged horse, caressing it’s smooth and cool head, but his hand stilled soon afterwards. He slowly turned towards Woohyun’s hat, bobbing midair as he circled around the thestrals. “Wait…can you see these?”

A wave of relief flush through the wizard as the hat shook back and forth. “Nope, you can only see these if you see death, right?” he asked. His eyes then focused on the wizard’s hand obviously resting on something unseen in the air. “Hyung…have you?”

Sunggyu immediately removed his hand and put it in his pocket. “Um, yea, but that was a long time ago. I don’t even remember it,” he answered walking to the carriage tied behind the thestrals. The other carriages have already departed with their passengers, and theirs was the only one left. He climbed inside. He looked for his friend, only to see him facing the thestrals still. Sunggyu leaned forward, resting his arms on the carriage’s edge. “Maybe you’re like them too. People can only see you, if they’ve seen something else,” he pondered outloud. The hat and glasses snapped towards him. Woohyun then made his way over and joined him in the carriage.

“Maybe if you’ve seen true love, you can see me?” Woohyun proposed, sliding into the seat across from the other. “That would make sense because you’re too much of a loner to experience that.”

The joke stung, causing Sunggyu to look away, but he tried to hide it with a scoff. “Then what about your parents? They couldn’t see you, and Sungjong too.”

The hat and glasses shook violently. Woohyun was shivering. “Don’t remind me of that weird couple, hyung. Myungsoo gives me the creeps,” he muttered under his breath. A few moments later he sighed. “I wonder what it’s like to love someone that much that you don’t even care about whether they were living or not,” he thought outloud.

“You don’t know either?” Sunggyu asked and immediately regretted his use of ‘either.’

The glasses turned from the passing scenery and towards the wizard. “Hyung, I can’t see myself either,” he joked referring to the condition he laid earlier. Woohyun then looked away and back towards the castle which was growing in size the closer they got. “Just like the movies,” he declared. His feet were bouncing on the carriage floors, ready to pounce out the moment the carriage stopped. He’s waited his entire life for this moment, and he didn’t want to waste another second.

The carriage finally stopped, and Woohyun jumped out and sprinted towards the castle as soon as his feet hit the soft ground. He ignored the shouts from his friend as he pranced up the path. After all, what was so dangerous here? He admitted that he was stupid about the lake earlier, but there was nothing dangerous about a door, especially after he saw his fellow passengers filter through it unharmed. Yep, this time Nam Woohyun was using his head as he sprinted excitedly.

But somehow he still landed with his back pressed to the grass and a heavy weight on his chest, pinning him down. Something slimey and wet trailed down his face. “Ah! You got one! Good job, Tongtongie!” a rough and heavily accented voice praised whatever had tackled Woohyun. A gloved hand reached to grab the color around the neck of the black beast. It relented, obeying its master, and backed away to reveal a stern looking man with deep wrinkles creased in his tanned face and a seemingly permanent grimace on his face. “You thought you could just enter the castle, eh muggle? You’re the first one this year,” he said, grabbing the collar of his shirt and pulling him up. Although significantly older than the invisible boy, the man was around the same height, his hair was wild and unclipped. He looked Woohyun up and down and let out a condescending chuckle. “Word of advice, boy. Next time you try to camouflage yourself, don’t forget your clothes…and that my hound will be able to sniff you out regardless.” He nodded to the black beast next to him who was about half his height. The man then began to head towards the castle, dragging Woohyun behind him. “Come on, boy. The headmaster will make sure you forget this ever happened, and we’ll send you on your way.”

“HOYA!” Sunggyu had finally caught up to them and was panting from exertion. “Hoya! The muggle’s with me,” he explained.

A hearty laugh ripped through the air. Woohyun stared with his jaw dropped at the man next to him. The face had warmed up, transforming the stern wrinkles into smile lines. His smile appeared wolfish still with his sharp canines, but friendly all the same. “Well, well, well,” Hoya spoke letting go of Woohyun’s collar and focusing his attention on Sunggyu. “If it isn’t one of the Beastie Boys? Did you come back to terrorize us like you used too?”

Sunggyu smiled back at the other. “You liked it. You were the one who kept inviting us to your hut for a ‘good romp.’ Admit it. You miss me.”

Hoya crossed his arms and looked away with a frown. “Well, I don’t miss being woken up in the middle of the night because two boys got locked out of the castle again.” He turned towards the wizard and smiled even more warmly. “At least not much.” Hoya then cleared his throat. The moment was getting too sentimental for his liking. “What brings you back?”

Sunggyu nodded towards his neglected friend. “Him. I, uh, did that to him,” he confessed, blush forming on his cheeks.

Hoya laughed again, his mouth ripping incredibly wide. He patted the large hound next to him. “Do you hear that, Tongtongie? The Beastie Boys are still causing trouble.” The laugh died down with a soft sigh and a shake of his head. “Some things never change. Follow me. I’ll escort you to your uncle. Come on, boy.” Woohyun was unsure if he was referring to the black dog or himself, but he followed Hoya anyways.

Woohyun slowed his steps to match the wizard’s. “You have an uncle here?” he asked. Sunggyu’s eyes were fixed on Hoya’s long, leather coat, swishing back and forth as he walked.

“I really don’t like people knowing that we’re related,” Sunggyu curtly replied. “He’s nothing but trouble.”

Hoya craned his neck to the two boys behind him. “Don’t say that, Gyu. He has good intentions,” he retorted.

Sunggyu ducked his head and nodded, feigning to agree with that statement, but Woohyun heard him mutter under his breath, “What good are intentions if he still screws things up?”

Woohyun nudged the wizard, and Sunggyu snapped his head back up, staring Woohyun in the eye. “Hey, Gyu, that’s a cute name. Can I call you that too?” he asked.

“No,” the other responded roughly, but a small smile graced his face.

“Too late,” Woohyun retorted, sticking his tongue out at the elder (and by the look on Sunggyu’s face, he knew it). The muggle quickened his step to match the man in front of them. “Hoya-ssi, tell me all about Gyu as a student? Was he _naughty_?”

Hoya cackled again. “Naughty doesn’t even begin to describe it.” The man then began to recount stories from the past, of Sunggyu the mischievous Ravenclaw and his immature best friend, whom Hoya kept calling ‘that stupid kid.’ Apparently, Sunggyu had become a potion’s master without a slew of trial and errors, but mostly errors. The school had to be evacuated on a number of occasions because of the potion ‘master’s’ experiments. And so Hoya wasn’t so surprised with Woohyun and his condition. Actually, it seemed like the old man almost expected it. And all the while this story-telling was going on, Sunggyu was trailing far behind them, groaning with his head hanging down, wanting to die.

“But, Hoya-ssi, why do you call Gyu and that kid the Beastie Boys?” Woohyun asked, his hand was unconsciously rubbing the head of the black hound (who apparently was a big softie just like his owner, as evident that the only way Tongtongie knew how to attack people was with kisses).

“That…is…a good question,” Hoya vaguely responded, craning his neck to look back at Sunggyu, who head was now raised and shaking back and forth violently. Hoya snapped back forward and smiled awkwardly at Woohyun. “I couldn’t tell you. Just one of those things that just stuck, I guess,” the explanation was hardly convincing.

But Woohyun’s mind was soon torn away from that enigma by the large mess of slobber now dripping from his hand. “Ew! Gross!” He narrowed his eyes on Tongtongie, who seemed to be smiling with delight and his tongue was rolling out of his jowls.

“We’re here!” Hoya announced as they arrived in front of a large eagle statue. “Hey there, Sam!” Hoya greeted, and the statue came to life, bowing. Woohyun jumped at seeing the stone suddenly move, but his surprise was soon replaced with amazement, knowing exactly where they were about to enter: a replica of Dumbledore’s office. “The boy wants to see his uncle,” Hoya announced, gesturing to Sunggyu who just waved at the statue. Woohyun stared at the embarrassed wizard curiously. _So his uncle is the headmaster…is that why he doesn’t want people to know?_ His thoughts were soon derailed from a loud caw coming from the eagle.

“Gyu-goon! He’s been expecting you!” the eagle squawked and opened the passageway into the office.

Sunggyu groaned, “When the Hell isn’t he? He must be expecting me all the damn time!”

“He just misses you, that’s all,” Hoya said. Hoya’s eyes flittered to Woohyun with an unsteady gaze. “You go on ahead, boy. I need to talk to Gyu for a second.” And Woohyun didn’t need to be asked twice to enter the place he wanted to see most in the world. He darted right past the eagle and into the office. Hoya smiled crookedly watching Woohyun’s clothes disappear into the entrance. “He’s a good kid,” he said. He then faced Sunggyu with his stern expression. “Have you given any thought about what would happen after you get him back to normal?”

Sunggyu looked down at his feet and put his hands in his pockets. “A little,” he answered meekly, kicking the stonework beneath his feet.

Hoya fully turned towards him and crossed his arms over his chest, looking incredibly imposing even if his stature wasn’t that large. Even Tongtongie added to his presence. “You know what you have to do. It’ll be better for all of us and for him, if you cast a memory charm after all of this is over. That way, the kid could return to his own world and lead his life normally,” Hoya spoke authoritatively, like a mother scolding a child for eating a cookie before dinner, like Sunggyu was ‘ruining’ Woohyun’s life like the child spoiled his appetite.

And sadly he was right. No matter how much Sunggyu thought about this, no matter how many scenarios he played in his mind, the only and best solution was to cure Woohyun and erase his memory. Woohyun already knew too much, and it would be impossible for him to led a normal life in the muggle world with that kind of knowledge. And he couldn’t live in the magical world either. He nearly had himself killed 3 times today, and it was just past 2 in the afternoon. “I know,” Sunggyu responded meekly. “And I’m going to.”

Hoya put his hand on Sunggyu’s shoulder, offering some condolence. “You’re a good kid too…most of the time,” he lightly teased.

Sunggyu lifted his head and smiled weakly. “Thanks,” he replied as he stepped towards the office entrance. But he quickly retreated his steps, rounding back to the old man. Sunggyu gave Hoya a quick hug. “It was good seeing you again, Hoya.”

Hoya smiled wolfishly again as he gave the younger a squeeze. “You too,” he responded and let go. He quickly cleared his throat again. The atmosphere was a little too mushy for his liking. “Tongtongie and I are going to hunt some Tebo’s now. They’ve been wrecking havoc on the grounds. See you later, Gyu,” he spoke as roughly and manly as he could before his climbed back down the stairs.

Sunggyu waved goodbye to Hoya and then spun on his heels, walking straight into the headmaster’s office, where (not surprising) Woohyun was busy examining the knick-knacks littered about the room. He currently was tossing a Remembrall up and down. As soon as it hit his palm, a cloud of red smoke filled it’s insides. “Shit! That can’t be good,” he cursed. “What am I forgetting?”

The wizard rolled his eyes and snatched the Remembrall away from the other and placing it back on the shelf. The red smoke suddenly cleared. “How about your manners?” Sunggyu retorted.

Woohyun scoffed. “Haha very funny…but where’s your uncle? I don’t see him anywhere.” He had surveyed the room already while Sunggyu was talking to Hoya (and touched a lot of things. Good thing his skin was transparent because he didn’t want Sunggyu to see the burn he got from playing with a miniature of a phoenix that had burst into flames as soon as he touched it. Nope, that would lead to a lot of nagging that Woohyun wasn’t in the mood for). Other than the objects, the moving portraits (which Woohyun tried to talk too, but they were all too snobbish to acknowledge him), and the weird fishbowl with a golden flower floating in it, there was nothing else in the room.

“Oh no, he’s here,” Sunggyu insisted. He walked up to the desk and knocked on its oaken surface. “Seriously, Professor? Under the desk? I thought you were better than that.” An older man in a green robe crawled out from under the desk, with his long pastel pink beard trailing on the floor. He slowly straightened himself up, the creaking in his joints giving away his age, but the twinkle in his eyes was still useful as he giggled sheepishly at his nephew.

“You!” Woohyun exclaimed, pointing at the headmaster (although it really had no effect, being invisible and all). “You’re Dumbledore?! Uh, I mean, the headmaster…and you!” His finger pointed at Sunggyu now, but it’s not like the other could tell. “You’re his nephew?! B-but you guys look nothing alike!” Woohyun’s hand flew to his head, ruffling his hair and hat in frustration. His hat fell off his head. “This makes no sense.”

“Nam-goon! It’s good to see you again,” Sunggyu’s uncle was apparently oblivious to Woohyun’s distress. “We haven’t been officially introduced yet. I’m Professor Jang Dongwoo, and welcome to Hogwarts School of witchcraft and wizardry…the South Korean branch!” he walked up to Woohyun, trying to give him a handshake, but his hand missed the other’s several times. Finally he found it and giggled in delight as he squeezed it warmly.

“Professor,” Sunggyu called out to the old wizard now swinging Woohyun’s arm around. “If this is the first time you’ve been introduced yet, how come you know Woohyun’s name?” he challenged.

The professor’s hand slowly came to a halt. The smile fled his face as he blankly stared at the invisible man in front of him. “Because…” he was grasping for an explanation in the back of his mind. “Because he was wearing a nametag when I first met him. Yes, a perfectly logical explanation.” The cheerful smile returned back to his face. He let go of Woohyun’s hand with a final, tight squeeze.

“Oh yea, nice to meet you,” Woohyun finally managed to find his voice again. He watched the old wizard walking back to his nephew and giving him some playful pokes. Sunggyu looked at the other sternly, as if their roles were reversed. “How are you two even related?”

“Good question!” Professor Jang chirped with a little hop. “I’m his father’s brother, but he refuses to call me ‘Samchon.’ It makes me sad,” he whimpered with a hurt expression. Sunggyu just rolled his eyes. “Even though I let him live in my house, helped him set up shop, gave him the master bedroom,” he began to list off, looking straight as his nephew as he said them.

“Wow, Gyu. You big meanie,” Woohyun teased walking up to the headmaster’s side. “I’ll call you Samchon, if you want,” Woohyun offered.

“Really?” Professor Jang’s face lit up.

“Eung!” Woohyun responded. “Samchon!” The professor giggled. “Samchon!” The laugh grew louder. “Samchon! Samchon! Samchon! Sam-“

“SAMCHON!” Sunggyu yelled angrily. The laughing duo fell silent and turned towards Sunggyu who was huffing. And in spite of the harsh volume and the growling tone, the headmaster was smiling brightly at his nephew’s ‘endearment.’ “Samchon,” Sunggyu growled again. “Isn’t there something a little off about Woohyun?”

Professor Jang looked the boy in question up and down, his finger tapping his chin pensively. Then he snapped his fingers, having arrived at the conclusion. “Did you get a haircut?” he asked, wagging his finger at Woohyun.

Woohyun leaned towards Sunggyu and whispered, “Uh…can he see me?”

“I-I don’t know.”

The headmaster snorted and sputtered into a gleeful chuckle. “I was just kidding. He’s invisible. I’m not a dummy,” he retorted, jutting his chin out towards his nephew. “Come. Let’s sit down, and you can tell me the whole story.”

And Sunggyu did, slowly at first, afraid to admit his own faults to his uncle. But Professor Jang was nodding understandingly along, never interrupting him to reprimand him or to tell him how stupid he was being (unlike Sungjong). And so his story built up steam. Woohyun occasionally, never able to remain silent, threw in a comment or two, like how he ‘begged’ for Woohyun’s help and he corrected Owllie to Hedwig on several occasions (it was his damn bird).

“Hm,” the headmaster hummed in thought after hearing the story. “So you don’t know what you did to cause this?”

“Not a clue,” Sunggyu admitted.

The professor stroked his pink beard, his eyes gazed past the two boys. “Well…” he began thoughtfully. Sunggyu held his breath. His uncle, although silly at times and borderline insane, was a brilliant man. You don’t rise to a position like his without some exceptional intelligence. If anyone could get them out of this mess, it was Jang Dongwoo. “I’m stumped,” he finished with a sheepish giggle.

“Samchon!” Sunggyu and Woohyun protested in unison.

“This,” Professor Jang started in his sage-like tone, pointing his finger onto his desk. “This is not my puzzle to solve. It’s not my lesson to learn. I can’t tell you the answer or else you won’t learn anything. That’s cheating,” he lectured with a twinkle in his eye. He stood up from his desk. “Now Gyu-goon, I suggest you hit the books. I suspect that the answer may be hidden in the library. I’ll take Nam-goon on a tour of the grounds with Hoya,” he winked at the invisible boy.

“Okay,” Sunggyu replied, completely disheartened. He should have known that his uncle, the professor, would have used this as a teaching moment. He stood up from his own chair and dragged his feet across the office.

“Gyu-goon, before you go.” A set of keys whizzed through the air and fell into Sunggyu’s palms. “The keys to the forbidden section of the library and to the potion master’s apartment. It’s still empty. We haven’t, er, found one yet, so you two can sleep there tonight,” the headmaster explained. Sunggyu looked up to his uncle who was currently shooing him away. “Now go! Nam-goon and I have 12 years of catching up to do.” Sunggyu muttered something under his breath as he exited the office. Professor Jang giggled as he walked around his desk. “Good. We got rid of him,” he cheered, bending down to pick up Woohyun’s fallen hat, and he placed it on his own head. “Now you! You’re too suspicious. Muggles aren’t supposed to be here, so we’ll have to hide you. Don’t want to get into trouble,” he rambled as he shuffled over to a cabinet and pulled open a drawer to pull out a shimmering cloak. The headmaster threw it over Woohyun’s shoulders. “There! Perfectly invisible!” he cheered.

Woohyun picked at the invisibility cloak on him. He raised his hand which was covered by the cloak. The thing was, he wasn’t ‘perfectly’ invisible. Now he resembled a chameleon blending into its background, fairly noticeable under close observation. “Um, Samchon. If I need to not be seen, I can just take off my clothes.”

The headmaster shook his head adamantly. “No, I wouldn’t suggest that. Tongtongie is a licker. Unless you want to get slobber _everywhere_ , including…”

“The cloak is fine. I like the cloak. Let’s go!”

And that was the beginning of probably the best afternoon of his life. They had left the office, and Professor Jang gave an extensive tour of the castle, telling Woohyun its history and some funny anecdotes about some rooms and past students. They went into the Great Hall and saw the four long tables belonging to each of the houses. Woohyun ran to sit down at the Gryffindor table (of course). The headmaster practically had to pry the other off the bench to continue the tour.

Professor Jang then lead him to several classrooms, telling the other about the teachers there. And when they entered the potions’ classroom, the old man sighed. “Potions…no teacher yet,” he stated sadly as he slowly sauntered into the room.

“Why don’t you just hire Gyu, Samchon?” Woohyun asked. His voice echoed because his head was inside a cauldron.

“Because he’s not ready yet, _but_ he is getting closer,” the wizard replied with a wink. He put his hands behind his back as he inspected the room. “He just needs to learn that there’s more to life than just money and fame.”

“Like magic!” Woohyun added, pulling his head from the cauldron.

Professor Jang sighed. “There’s more to life than just magic too.”

“ _I_ know,” Woohyun retorted. “There’s a lot more, like family and friends…and love,” he thought back to the life lessons learned from his beloved books. Out of the corner of his eyes, he could see the professor agreeing with him. Woohyun then jogged up to the other’s side, trying to see what he was looking at. “You guys have a weird relationship, and you guys look nothing alike. Are you adopted? Is Gyu adopted?”

The professor laughed and shook his head. “No, Gyu-goon just takes after his mother, but our relationship is complicated for a reason.”

“Ah!” Woohyun clapped his hands. “Nepotism!”

“Sure, let’s go with that,” the headmaster replied as he walked out of the classroom. Woohyun furrowed his brows, not knowing whether that was a typical response from the headmaster, but vague answers were all he was getting lately. It was annoying. _Maybe it’s a wizard thing_. He all the sudden started to appreciate Sunggyu’s bluntness.

After they were done with a tour of the castle (of course they couldn’t explore every nook and cranny. They didn’t have a time, and the headmaster had said he wanted to preserve the ‘mystic’ of the castle. Woohyun thought the other said that because the muggle had accidentally blurted out something about the Chamber of Secrets. The tour ended shortly after that). For the tour of the grounds, they were lead by Hoya (accompanied by his hound, of course, who immediately licked Woohyun’s face again and made the headmaster’s beard sopping wet). Hoya was revealed to be the groundskeeper; however, unlike Hagrid from the series, Hoya was (obviously a lot smaller and) an excellent wizard. He put his magic to good use to keep back the deadly creatures from the surrounding forest and mountains, which was apparently a home to a good number of dragons. Hoya was also a close classmate of the professor’s and had retired career as a quidditch player (he was a beater)and become the groundskeeper as a favor to his old friend. He also let Woohyun fly (well hover) on his old team broom. Which was the perfect end to his perfect afternoon.

Professor Jang squinted at the sun as it was setting, painting the entire sky orange and pink. “Well, it’s time we head back and eat dinner,” he announced.

“Come on, Samchon. Five more minutes!” Woohyun begged as he kicked up from off the ground, hovering on the broomstick. “I think I got the hang of it,” he said proudly to Hoya.

Hoya glanced over to his friend. “How old is this kid again?” he teased.

Woohyun’s feet touched the ground. “I’m sorry. It’s just that…this is everything I ever dreamed of when I was a kid,” he apologized, handing the broomstick back to the groundskeeper. “Things are finally the way they should be.” Hoya raised his eyebrows at the other, who was barely visible against the background. Woohyun chuckled. He had meant that things were finally aligning with his expectations. Things were exactly like they were in the books, with a few differences. He breathed in deeply the fresh mountain air. He wished that everyday could be just like today. He would like spending his days like this even if he were invisible. He felt like he belonged here. He felt happy.

But the smile quickly fled his face and his stomach sank. There was an incessant nagging in the back of his mind. Truth was, he didn’t belong here. He had a life back home. He couldn’t abandon his parents now to live out his childhood dream. That would be selfish. _There’s more to life than just magic. I can’t do whatever I want. I can’t just live for myself._

Being an adult sucked.

“Let’s go back in,” Woohyun grumbled.

* * *

Sunggyu joined them for dinner in Hoya’s hut. The four of them ate a meal prepared by the groundskeeper himself. It was simple but hearty. In the end, it didn’t matter how it tasted because they washed everything down with large mugs of beer; everything after a buzz tasted heavenly.

But there was one person who didn’t appear to be enjoying his meal. Sunggyu pushed the food around the  plate with his fist pressed against his cheek. “Gyu, what’s wrong?” Woohyun asked, watching the wizard move the food with his chopsticks.

“Nothing,” Sunggyu muttered back. “Just thinking.” He looked utterly exhausted and depleted. Obviously the past couple of days had taken as much of a toll on him as they did on Woohyun.

“Did you find a cure?” the muggle reluctantly inquired.

The chopsticks fell with a clang against the table. Sunggyu quickly picked them back up again. “Maybe,” he quickly replied and began shoveling the food into his mouth. Woohyun didn’t press the issue. _Maybe vague answers is  a wizard thing. Maybe I should work on it_.

“So Nam-goon, did you have a good day?” Professor Jang asked, tearing the muggle’s attention away from his friend.

“The best day ever!” _Damn it._

* * *

After the meal was finished, the young men and the old wizard headed back into the castle. Sunggyu’s uncle wished them a good night and headed off into his chambers. Woohyun was left to follow a somber and silent Sunggyu. The muggle wasn’t going to let that dampen his spirits. He walked around, looking at every painting, bust, everything they passed. And soon all he saw was Sunggyu’s back as he ran into it…again. The wizard really needed to stop doing that.

“Are you wearing an invisibility cloak?” Sunggyu asked, squinting at the other.

Woohyun pulled off the hood, revealing his glasses. “You finally noticed, huh? I can finally wear clothes again!”

“That is…the dumbest solution I’ve ever seen,” he remarked, a small smile finally gracing his face. He laughed. “Seriously? It’s so stupid!” He picked at the cloak.

Woohyun started to laugh along with him. “It is, isn’t it?” he agreed, happy to see the other out of his funk.

But then the smile fled. “Shit! Someone’s coming,” Sunggyu whispered, pulling the hood over Woohyun and pushing the younger behind him. They stayed like that for several moments, holding their breath. Woohyun couldn’t hear or see anything himself, until…a soft clicking resounded throughout the hall. It grew louder and louder. But, Woohyun still couldn’t see a damn thing. Maybe it was invisible like himself.

“Meow!”

Woohyun glanced downwards. He immediately hopped onto Sunggyu’s back, pointing at the beast. “What kind of monster are you?!” he squealed.

Sunggyu wiggled and dropped his friend from his back. He bent down and started to pet the small pinkish creature. “That’s not a monster,” he chuckled as the cat licked his hand. Sunggyu grimaced. “It’s ugly though, but not a monster. Isn’t that, right Jureumi?” He scratched the naked cat behind its ears and it began purring. The wizard lifted his head and looked around. “Where’s your owner?”

“Well, I’ll be damned,” a voice echoed in the hall. A tall man emerged from the shadows with a smirk on his face. He clicked his tongue, and the cat pranced back to his side. He scooped it up into his arms, stroking it tenderly. He looked back at Sunggyu and lifted his chin. “It’s my so-called best friend, back from the dead.”

Woohyun gasped, stepping away from Sunggyu. _I always knew something was strange about him._ Sunggyu, on the other hand, scoffed, “Don’t exaggerate. I never died.” He shoot a worried glance towards Woohyun and insisted, “I didn’t die.”

“Might as well have been dead,” the tall man with the cat mumbled. He lifted his eyebrows sadly. “You never kept in touch like you said you would.”

“You didn’t either,” Sunggyu retorted.

The man brought up his face from the cat, smirking. “That’s because I’m chic,” he replied coolly.

Sunggyu sputtered into a laugh. “Lee Sungyeol, you never changed.”

Sungyeol chuckled a bit too. “You know I do. Once a month,” he argued. His hand tightened against the cat as he muttered in a hushed voice, “And it’s getting worse.” The cat sunk its claws into his skin. “Ah ah ah!” he yelped. “Okay, okay I’m letting you down.” As soon as he put the cat on the ground, it sped off like a shot, and Sungyeol looked a little heartbroken by it.

Sunggyu walked up and hit the other on the shoulder. “Sorry,” he apologized. “That I couldn’t help you with that like I said I would.”

“You can now,” Sungyeol said with eyes wide with hope. “No one makes the Wolfsbane Potion like you do.” _Wolfsbane, where have I heard that before_ , Woohyun wondered, stepping closer to the duo. _Sungyeol…is he the other Beastie Boy?_ He had a hard time believing that the two would be so close.

The muggle felt Sunggyu reach for him. Woohyun put out his hand, and Sunggyu’s fingers circled around his wrists. “I’ll make you one before I leave,” Sunggyu offered Sungyeol and pulled Woohyun with him down the hall.

 “Wait!” Sungyeol shouted. He looked even more sad than when his cat ran off. “You’re leaving already? B-but you just got here!” _What happened to being chic_? Sungyeol stomped up to his friends and looked at him confused. “D-did you not come to see me? I thought Samchon told you about the job.”

Sunggyu dropped Woohyun’s wrist. He cocked his head. “What job?”

“You’re looking at the new teacher for the Magical Creatures course,” Sungyeol announced proudly, pointing at his puffed up chest.

 “You!” Sunggyu exclaimed in complete shock. “You’re going to be a teacher?!”

Sungyeol pushed the other and frowned. “Geez, don’t act all surprised. I wasn’t that bad at school,” he argued. His friend sent him a skeptical look. “Okay okay, maybe I was,” he confessed. He wiggled his eyebrows at the other. “But I know a thing or two about magical creatures.”

“Takes one to know one,” Sunggyu remarked with a smirk.

Sungyeol nodded. “I’m thinking about changing in front of my students when I teach them about werewolves,” he sputtered excitedly. “Wouldn’t that be cool? Take them out in the middle of the night, then raaaaaaawr!” He mimicked ripping apart his shirt and changing into…and Woohyun suddenly remembered what Wolfsbane was for.

“Lee Sungyeol, that is the worst-“

“HOLY SHIT! HE’S A F***ING WEREWOLF!” Woohyun shouted and jumped up away from the tall wizard. The hood fell away from his head, revealing his round glasses, floating in the air.

 “HOLY SHIT! THERE’S SOMEONE ELSE HERE?!” Sungyeol squealed and hid behind Sunggyu. “Is it a ghost? I f***ing hate those things.”

“No,” Sunggyu said with a frustrated sigh. He stepped away from the werewolf, who made a grab for his fleeing friend/protection, and stood next to the glasses. “Woohyun, this is Sungyeol, my best friend from school. And Yeol, this is Nam Woohyun…the boy I made invisible.”

* * *

The three relocated to the potion master’s apartment, where they could speak more freely. Sunggyu repeated the story he had shared with his uncle, and Woohyun added his own commentary (Sungyeol agreed that Hedwig was a better name than Owllie too). But when he was finished, they all sat around a round table in silence as Sungyeol was soaking in everything they just told him. His round eyes were scanning the hovering clothes across from him (Woohyun had put away the cloak earlier).

“Wah!” Sungyeol finally spoke. A wide smile graced his face, exposing his gums. He slapped his friend next to him. “You outdid yourself this time, hyung. What? Did you forget the time you turned me blue and nearly killed me? I thought you learned your lesson about testing potions,” he lectured Sunggyu.

And he accepted it in stride. “I did. It’s just that,” he shot a quick glance at the boy on the other side of the table. “Woohyun needs adult supervision,” he mumbled.

Sungyeol stood up and leaned over the table, waving his hand around until it made contact with Woohyun’s head. And when it did, he kept slapping the same spot. An amused smile appeared on his face. “Fascinating,” he muttered in awe.

Woohyun slapped the wizard’s hand away and stood up too, slapping Sungyeol like he had done moments prior with each word he spoke, “Yah! Don’t poke me like I’m an ghost. I’m a person.”

Sungyeol pulled away, hand on reddening cheek. But the smile remained. In fact, he looked even more excited. “Yea, but just barely. Like us!” he exclaimed, gesturing between himself and Sunggyu.

 “Us?” Woohyun repeated. His eyes went straight to Sunggyu, who suddenly found the ceiling very very interesting. “Gyu-hyung,” he called out to the other. Sunggyu slowly brought down his head, met Woohyun’s gaze for a second, and immediately looked to the right. “What does he mean by ‘us’?”  Woohyun pressed.

Sungyeol’s eyes sparkled mischievously, staring at his classmate. “ _You_ didn’t tell him,” he said in a sing-song tone,  like children do whenever they catch another in a lie. He stepped closer to Sunggyu, who jumped from his seat and away from the werewolf.

He raised his hands between them, a silent prayer for the other not to come any closer. “It didn’t really come up?” he spoke in a meek voice.

Woohyun was confused, watching the werewolf stalk his friend. Should he get involved? _Against a werewolf, no way_. “What didn’t come up?” he decided to ask.

Sungyeol laughed like a madman, even throwing his head back, his shoulders jostling up and down with every chuckle. “Ho ho! _You_ didn’t tell him. I guess you won’t mind if I show him then,” the werewolf threatened.

“Yeol, don’t,” Sunggyu objected, sprinting to the other side of the room. The werewolf reacted and chased after him.

“Show me what?” Woohyun inserted, walking closer to where Sungyeol cornered Sunggyu. _Serves him right for being so slow_ , but even that joke didn’t ease the tension growing within Woohyun. He had been suspicious of the wizard for a long time. There were some things that didn’t quite add up, and lately Sunggyu had been acting skittish, more on edge. So Woohyun allowed Sunggyu to be trapped by the werewolf. He was invisible. He could’ve probably outsmarted and outmaneuvered Sungyeol (especially with his known fear of ghosts), but more than anything Woohyun wanted to know the truth.

Sungyeol smiled triumphantly. He was behind Sunggyu, pinning the elder’s arms to his back. Sunggyu was squirming and protesting. Sungyeol’s biceps flexed as he tightened his old on Sunggyu. “What your _Gyu_ - _hyung_ really is,” Sungyeol said with a sneer. He brought his face until it hovered over Sunggyu’s shoulder, his lips hovering up the elder’s neck. Sunggyu tried to crane his neck away, and a few desperate pleas fell from his lips. But Sungyeol was able to follow him. He guided his mouth up to behind Sunggyu’s ear. Sungyeol puffed his cheeks and softly blew onto the ear. Sunggyu’s face grew red. His ears twitched. His eyes were wide and blinking. Sungyeol chuckled happily and let the elder go. And as he stepped away, five white, plush tails came from behind Sunggyu’s body. Sungyeol waved excitedly at them. “A demon! Jjang!” the werewolf finally finished with a dramatic flair.

A loud thud rang throughout the room. Woohyun had fainted.

* * *

“Hyun…Woohyunnie?” Sunggyu’s voice echoed in the air. There was also a high-pitched ringing accompanying it. Woohyun slowly opened his eyes. Everything was hazy, blurry. His glasses, they were gone. And he was…on his back? _Shit. I must’ve fainted._ There was a dull throbbing on the back of his head and a stiffness in his neck, proving that he had fallen on it. In spite of the pain, everything became a little clearer. He could make out Sunggyu’s face hovering over his. Woohyun flinched, feeling his head brush against the fabric of the wizard’s jeans. He squinted up at the other. _I’m in his lap? Well, this is weird._

“Sungyeol, I swear if he doesn’t wake up soon, I’m going to pummel you,” Sunggyu hissed at his friend, completely oblivious to the fact that Woohyun had already come to…he was just a little afraid to admit it to his friend-that-was-really-a-demon.

Sungyeol’s face suddenly appeared in his line of vision.  “If you _really_ think about it, it’s not my fault,” the werewolf defended himself. He started wagging a blurry finger in Sunggyu’s face (Woohyun really needed his glasses). “You should’ve told him earlier.”

Woohyun felt Sunggyu’s hand brush against his hair. He felt it getting closer and closer to his scalp. _Okay, that’s enough!_ Woohyun sprang up from Sunggyu’s lap. “Yea, you should’ve,” Woohyun complained, rubbing the back of his neck. He had gotten up too quickly, and the throbbing was becoming more intense.

“You’re awake,” Sunggyu sounded relieved, scooting over to his revived friend.

Woohyun immediately put a hand up, stopping the approaching wizard in his chest. “Just,” he started and crawled away until his back was against the wall. “Just stay there, okay?” he begged.

Sungyeol whistled lowly, evaluating the situation in front of him. He got up from the floor and dusted off his pants. “Well, I think I know when it’s time for me to leave,” he announced. He then grabbed Sunggyu by the shoulder. “Don’t forget your promise, ‘kay hyung? The Wolfsbane,” he reminded his friend. Sunggyu nodded and waved until the other left the room.

The wizard faced the boy huddled in the corner, the knees of his jeans were pinned to the chest of his shirt. He was scared. Sunggyu slowly made his way toward the other, sliding across the floor, and as far as he could tell, Woohyun didn’t move away. Once he was a foot away, he stopped. He looked down at his lap, nervously twiddling his thumbs. “Woohyun, I…” he started.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Woohyun interrupted.

Sunggyu let out a slight laugh. “You’re not even going to ask what I am?”

“Well, it’s obvious with the tails. You’re a gumiho,” Woohyun responded with a dry voice. He shut his eyes tightly. He slept next to that _demon_ …nothing bad happened. But it could have.

“Half, actually,” Sunggyu added. He scratched the back of his ear. Woohyun watched it twitch inhumanly in response. How did he not notice before? “My mom was one. She’s human now, but…I still ended up like this,” he explained.

Woohyun’s head started pounding more strongly; the buzzing in his ear grew more loudly. His heart racing. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “Why didn’t you tell me earlier? I thought we were friends,” he grumbled.

 “We are.”

Woohyun’s eyes snapped wide open, narrowing them on the wizard. He wished that the wizard could see him now, just for this look. “No, friends don’t keep secrets like this,” he growled.

Sunggyu reeled as if he’d been hit. His head hung back down again. “I was afraid, okay?” he admitted quietly. “You were kinda already freaked out with the whole magic thing, and then the being invisible thing. I feel like you could have used one less thing to freak out over.”

Woohyun scoffed, letting go of his knees finally. “I wouldn’t have freaked out,” he retorted.

The wizard glanced up, raising an eyebrow. “Then what are you doing now?” he challenged with the tiniest trace of a smirk.

 “…Processing,” Woohyun responded, hating to admit that the other was right, partially. “Just give me a minute, okay?”

“Alright,” the half-demon relented. He got up and straightened out his jeans. He also pulled Woohyun’s glasses from his pocket and offered the frames to the muggle. Woohyun took them with whispers of thanks. Sunggyu nodded, his face growing grey. “I should probably go make that stupid potion for Sungyeol anyway,” he stated and began to head out of the door, to the laboratory attached to the apartment. Woohyun watched him shuffle off as slowly as ever. Regret was seen in every step.

 “Gyu, wait!” Woohyun shouted after him. Sunggyu turned with furrowed brows. “You’re not going to eat my liver or anything, right?” the muggle half-joked.

Sunggyu forced a smile onto his face, trying to be reassuring. “No,” he answered. “Your liver is too fatty.”

“Hyung!”

“I’m kidding. I’m kidding.”

* * *

“Shit!” Sunggyu cursed as he stopped stirring the bubbling potion underneath him. No, he didn’t need to mess up the potion. He’d made it perfectly after years of practice. It just needed to simmer for a few hours. But Sunggyu just about managed to screw up everything else in his life…and in Woohyun’s. Especially Woohyun’s.

He had found a solution this afternoon. It was a long stretch, but it was the only thing he could think of. It wasn’t a cure, per say, but an antidote. If he could make a potion that counterattacked every single ingredient in the first potion, Woohyun may return to normal. Unfortunately, there was one ingredient in the new potion, the castor bean, was probably one of the deadliest poisons out there. Everything could be ruined by a legume. “God damned bean.”

And then, _if_ Woohyun had managed to survive, Sunggyu would still have to erase the other’s memory, probably starting from the very beginning.

He didn’t particularly want to, but when was life about doing what he had wanted? There were things in life more important than him and his desires. And one of them was letting Woohyun live a relatively normal life, with or without him.

There was a knock at the door. Sunggyu turned to see the doorknob twisting. The door propped open, and glasses flew into his view. “Gyu, can we talk?” he asked stepping into the room, but then he stopped. “Wait. Is it safe?”

Sunggyu wiped his hands on a towel and nodded. He was glad for Woohyun’s preference for talking. It meant that they could resolve things more quickly. “Of course,” he answered, tossing the towel back onto the counter. Then he leaned against it. “What do you want to talk about?”

Woohyun walked over and leaned next to him. He hummed in thought. “Let’s start with your childhood.”

* * *

Sunggyu finally spilled everything that night. He actually began further back, to when his parents first met. His mother had met his father while she was still a gumiho. She had stalked him for three months before laying a trap for him. Then one night, under the guise of a beautiful woman, the fox demon lured him out into the woods, into her lair. She had began tearing into him, when he began to cry. He wasn’t like the other’s begging for his life, but he crying for her. He had been watching her, like she had been watching him. He’d fallen for her, amazed by her graceful demon form, entranced by her human. “You…don’t have to live like this…a slave to your desires,” he wheezed, blood flowing from his mouth. She stopped. She stopped eating from him, stopped feasting on flesh. She nursed him back to health, and his liver regenerated.

“How? Oh magic, right Gyu?”

“No. Biology, dummy.”

1000 days later, days free of killing and meat, she turned human, and then they married. But Sunggyu’s grandfather wasn’t pleased. His grandfather knocked his father from the family registry (he later adopted the common surname ‘Kim’ because he was no longer allowed to be a ‘Jang’). His grandfather forbade anyone to interact with him or even speak his name. Professor Jang, Sunggyu’s uncle and little brother to his father, refused to abide by those rules. He still kept in contact with his brother, but in secret. In fact, it wasn’t until Sunggyu’s 3rd year at Hogwarts, when his paternal grandfather had died, when the headmaster was revealed to be his uncle instead of a close family friend. And Sunggyu had a hard time adjusting to the new relationship, especially when the headmaster went overboard, wanting to do all of the uncle-nephew activities that they missed out over the years. It was a bit overwhelming.

Sunggyu had a sister as well, who had similar traits to him. They both had heightened senses, hence the reason why Sunggyu was able to so easily detect Woohyun’s position. Sunggyu had admitted that he followed the other’s scent.

“What do I smell like?”

“Sweat, mostly, because it’s hot outside…but also a little musky, with a hint of…” he sniffed. “Well now you just smell like beer.”

“Hint of what, hyung?”

“Forget it. It’s not important, anyways I…”

He also ate meat, nearly raw and in vast quantities; it made him feel healthier. He then explained how he never cooked beef for anyone else before outside of his family, so he didn’t know he was doing it wrong until he went to the restaurant with Woohyun. He also confessed that he tried abstaining from meat, like his mother had, hoping that his tails would fade away. He hated his tails. He was made fun for them all throughout his childhood and teenage years. They had a tendency to pop out whenever he got too excited, frightened, or when someone abused one of his sensitive areas like Sungyeol had. And soon it became a game for his classmates: ‘Who could make the fox show his tails?’ Not only was it embarrassing, but it also hurt for them to appear, as his tails would fight through whatever pants he was wearing. And so he tried to make them disappear by changing his diet.

“But they’re still here?”

“Duh.”

“Why?”

“Because meat tastes good.”

“Eung…how long did you last?”

“…23 days. I was _really_ hungry.”

Sunggyu tended to be bit more of an outcast because of his ‘family history.’ People either teased him, or were afraid of him. And sometimes both. The same held true at Hogwarts. For a few years, the only friend he had was Hoya and Tongtongie. The half-demon had forged a relationship with the groundskeeper one night when Sunggyu had an insatiable urge to hunt and Hoya was bored; instead of reporting the Ravenclaw for breaking curfew, Hoya decided to take him under his wing and into the forbidden forest to help him kill some rogue beasts. After that, the two made regular hunting trips into the forest. Because of those trips, Sunggyu also sharpened his skills as a wizard, and it made him rise to the top of the class. Which didn’t help the bullying at all either.

In his 4th year, he had heard of a 2nd year in Slytherin who had been bitten by his younger cousin, who just happened to be a werewolf. Sungyeol was then ostracized by his classmates and was found by Sunggyu one day, crying in the boys’ bathroom. Sunggyu showed him his tails, and the other excitedly rambled about how they should start an exclusive club: ‘Only Beastie Boys Allowed.’ Sunggyu agreed because he thought it would get the other to stop crying and let him poop in peace. What he didn’t expect was for the little werewolf boy (yes there was a time when Sungyeol was shorter) to follow him around like a puppy. Eventually, Sunggyu got used to the company, and they became close friends. Sungyeol also became acquainted to Hoya through his friend, and the two would help out Sungyeol whenever he went through ‘the changes.’ But just being there wasn’t enough.

And so Sunggyu learned how to make the Wolfsbane potion, which even a few experts could manage to make properly (the potion master at that time included). And that’s how Sunggyu found his passion. It turns out that his heightened sense were extremely useful when concocting potions. Because of it, the difficult potions weren’t so much of a struggle. He said that he went through, making each and every potion in a book from beginning to end.

“There’s few left now.”

“Except for the Philosopher’s Stone.”

“Eung. I’m almost done.”

He had also met Sungjong at Hogwarts too, and although he wasn’t a ‘Beastie Boy,’ Sungyeol insisted that the young boy had to be a part of their club because he thought Sungjong looked like a cat.

“And he’s so light on his feet too!”

“Not you too?!”

When Sunggyu had graduated, his uncle offered him  the chance to set up the Apothecary for the chance to hone his skills. He jumped at the chance, and perhaps plunged a little too deeply. He had lost contact with Sungyeol, who decided to travel the world and find other ‘Beastie Boys.’ Sunggyu would have also lost contact with Sungjong, if it weren’t for the fact that the younger owned the only wizard’s bookstore in town. His parents and sister were in the countryside, because of his parents’ weak health.

And besides Dwaeji and the occasional visits from Professor Jang, Sunggyu was holed up in the Apothecary, alone.

“And I guess that’s it,” Sunggyu finished,  playing with the towel in his hands. Over the course of the conversation, the two had migrated to on top of the counter, facing each other. Their feet slightly overlapping. The half-demon laughed to himself. _Why did I even tell him all of this? He’s going to forget it soon. It doesn’t matter_. His eyes drifted up from the towel to where the muggle’s face should have been. _Nothing_. And for the life of him, Sunggyu couldn’t remember what used to be there.

“What is it, hyung?” Woohyun asked, noticing the worried expression on the other’s face.

“I forgot what you looked like.”

“Oh,” Woohyun muttered. His hands went to touch his own face. It made sense. It had been days, and they hadn’t known each other for too long before then. “I guess that it’s been awhile,” he said with a sad chuckle.

“Come here,” Sunggyu ordered, gesturing for the other to lean closer. And when Woohyun did, Sunggyu grabbed the muggle’s face, removing the glasses and then carefully cupping his cheeks, caressing the skin gently under the pads of his thumbs.

Woohyun tried to pull away, but Sunggyu held him firm. “W-what are you doing?” he stuttered.

“Remembering,” the wizard exhaled, as he furrowed his face in concentration. His fingers traveled upwards slowly. They traced up and down the bridge of Woohyun’s sharp nose. Sunggyu then moved them outwards.

“Ow! That’s my eye,” Woohyun whined, blinking away the tears that formed after Sunggyu had poked him.

The warm hands fled from his face. “Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to,” Sunggyu apologized as was about to place his hand into the pocket of his hoodie.

Woohyun grabbed the wizard’s wrists and led them back to his face. “No, keep doing it,” he insisted, closing his eyes as soon as the hands cupped his face again to avoid another mishap. “I like it.”

Sunggyu’s fingers then began to explore his face again. Tentative at first, but he soon began to touch with a little added pressure until he was softly laughing and pinching Woohyun’s cheeks. “I forgot that your cheeks were like this. So round,” Sunggyu said, fascinated.  _That’s because I’m smiling_. Woohyun bit back his lips, hiding his smile. He shouldn’t be liking this so much. “Oh, where’d they go?” he exclaimed. Woohyun could feel him trying to pull up the cheeks again to where they once were. He bit down his tongue hard, refusing to smile again.

Sunggyu soon left his cheeks, and his long fingers traced the arch of his eyebrows and explored the small lines in his forehead, before they traveled back downwards along the sides. His knuckles followed the cut of Woohyun’s jaw. They met at the dimple on his chin and moved up. His thumb grazed the bottom of Woohyun’s lip. The muggle leaned down and kissed it.

The wizard let out a soft gasp. Woohyun opened his eyes to see Sunggyu blushing and staring at his thumb as if it had been pricked. Then the half-demon looked right back at the boy across from him, right where the lips were, and he unconsciously licked his own.

Woohyun took it as a sign and leaned in, placing his hands on either side of Sunggyu’s thighs and planting a soft kiss on the wizards lips. He pulled back, slowly opening his eyes to look at the other. Sunggyu’s face had grown into a deeper shade of red. His eyes wider than Woohyun thought possible. And except for the twitching of his ears, he was completely frozen.

The muggle jumped down from the counter. “Well, I’m going to bed,” he announced with a great show, forcing out a yawn. “Out here, right?” He tried to walk away but fell over some stools on his way to the door. He jumped up, glancing back at the wizard who was still frozen. “I’m okay! Don’t worry. Just stay there.” _Not like he’s moving anyways_. “Night, hyung!” he wished as he closed the door.

_What the Hell did I just do?_

* * *

  _What in the Hell did he just do?_

Sunggyu finally snapped out of it and slid off the counter. A chirping filled the room. It was the timer he had set. The potion was ready for Sungyeol. Sunggyu tried his best to bottle the Wolfsbane up quickly, but his hands were shaking. But after a few spills and a few extra minutes, it was all ready for the werewolf.

With a case full of bottles in hand, Sunggyu exited the lab with his tails trailing behind him.

Sungyeol must have set a timer of his own because he was outside of the apartment, waiting for his friend…and maybe for his cat to come back from wherever it was. The werewolf looked up at the demon with a smirk, fixing his round eyes on the white tails. “What?” Sunggyu asked non-chalantly, handing the case to his friend.

 “Nothing,” Sungyeol remarked with a sly glint in his eyes, accepting the case and placing it under his arm. “It’s just that now it totally makes sense why you never dated in school. Looks like you kept more than just one secret from him.”

Sunggyu scoffed, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Yea, play innocent, hyung. You’re _so_ good at it, you little fox,” Sungyeol teased, nudging his friend.

“So there’s your potion. I’m going-”

“So, hyung,” the werewolf interrupted, not wanting to let this die down like Sunggyu had. “Did you ever have a crush on me?”

Sunggyu bared his teeth at the other. “We’re not talking about this,” he growled.

Sungyeol jumped up. The bottles clanged against each other. “You did!” he exclaimed and pointed at the other and then to the door. “And now you like him. Wow, you really have a type.” He pulled back and shook his head.

“What? Obnoxious?” Sunggyu retorted.

Sungyeol frowned. “I was going to say ‘handsome’ or ‘honest,’ but…”

“I didn’t have a crush on you,” Sunggyu interrupted this time, looking smug. “I’m too good for you.”

“Psh. And this Nam Woohyun is better?“ the werewolf challenged, shifting the box to his other side. It was heavy.

Sunggyu sighed and fell back against the door, his tails swishing back and forth. “I don’t know. Just…don’t know,” he stammered.

 Sungyeol leaned on the wall next to him. “Well, I know this, being the clever snake I am,” and only Lee Sungyeol would say that with such pride. “If I knew something like your Woohyunnie existed, I would steal him and use him for my own benefit.”

The half-demon looked at his friend confused. “What do you mean?”

“You have something virtually undetectable,” he explained, setting down the case. His arms were tired. “Don’t you think someone might want that? And it’s not like curses that can control people don’t exist. You know which one I’m talking about,” he remarked, noticing the panic in Sunggyu’s face. “You should protect him.”

Sunggyu shook the doubts from his mind. “He’ll be fine. Besides only 4 people in this entire school knows that he’s here: me, samchon, Hoya, and you,” he stated and turned towards Sungyeol. His face was solemn and stern. “And you’re the one I’m worried most about.”

“These lips are sealed, impenetrable. Nothing is going to get past these,” Sungyeol remarked, ending with an air kiss.

Sunggyu stood up straight again and pointed at the werewolf in the chest. “I’m counting on you, okay? Don’t let me down,” he spoke in his usual commanding tone. He opened the door to his apartment and went inside.

“Yah!” Sungyeol barked. “Why do people always assume the worst in me? I got hired here, not you. Don’t forget that!” he grumbled as he picked up his case and walked back to his own rooms.

“Jureumi? Come here kitty!”

* * *

The truth was Sunggyu did like Woohyun, and just in the way the keen werewolf had thought. But just like for everything else, most of what the wizard knew about love came from books (yes, there was a time or two a less than academic book slipped into his pile. Sunggyu just wanted to be ‘well rounded’). Sunggyu had all of the symptoms (sudden redness, erratic heartbeat, aphasia, strange urges, etc.), even the ones from lovesick poets about the other always being on their minds. But Sunggyu’s case was a bit different there. Given the situation (making the other invisible and maybe ruining his life), he worried about Woohyun, a lot. He felt responsible for Woohyun and his actions. And he cared whether the other was eating right or was depressed or…on second thought, maybe Sunggyu’s situation wasn’t that much different than the poets’. So Sunggyu diagnosed himself with chronic love, but he couldn’t do the same for Woohyun.

For one, Sunggyu couldn’t observe the subject correctly to arrive at the same conclusion. Yes, Woohyun was the one to initiate the kiss (and was practically the only one doing actual kissing, but the wizard had been caught by surprise and also feeling it but not seeing Woohyun was really...abnormal), but displays of affection doesn’t always amount to love, or at least love of the same type and degree. For Woohyun’s actions, Sunggyu had already found a cause: transference.

Whenever Woohyun felt alone, Sunggyu was there. Whenever Woohyun missed his family and friends, Sunggyu was there. Whenever Woohyun wanted to be cared for and treated like a normal human being, Sunggyu did. Sunggyu had been assuming the roles of everyone important in Woohyun’s life recently. It would only be natural if some feelings or attachment would arise, especially with Woohyun being so affectionate and greedy for attention in the first place. So whether Woohyun kissed Sunggyu because he wanted to or because he had no one else to kiss, Sunggyu didn’t know. All he knew was that his own feelings were honest…and that Nam Woohyun had passed out in his bed again.

“You,” he poked the sleeping form in between his shoulders.  “This is a bad habit.” He sighed as he looked at the small twin bed. “I thought you went upstairs.” He picked at the covers, lifting them slightly. His hand drifted over to the small of Woohyun’s back, ready to push him to the side. But Sunggyu just sighed again, dropped the covers and took a step back. “This is a bad habit.”

He went up into the loft and slept on the couch there.

* * *

 Deep in the night, the door to the potion master’s quarters opened. A dark shadow slipped in and began slithering across the floor. The darkness darted through the apartment, searching for something, only to find it sleeping in the twin bed. The shadow raised itself until it was erected and poised over Woohyun who was softly snoring in his sweet slumber. A crooked wand was pulled from the long black cloak.

A low hiss filled the room.

“Imperio!”

* * *

 And they never saw Nam Woohyun again.

* * *

...

...

...

Just kidding!

“EXPELLIARMUS!” The crooked wand flew across the room. “STUPEFY!” A red spark zig-zagged across the air, hitting the cloaked figure square in the chest. A familiar laugh filled the room. “Lumnos.”

Light filled the room, revealing Sungyeol with a black wand decorated with a claw handle. The werewolf looked down at tsked at the middle aged man knocked out in front of him. “It’s always the Dark Arts teacher, isn’t it?” he remarked.  “Looks like we’ll be needing a new one of these again. They never last more than a year,” he said with a sigh.

Sunggyu poked out his head from the loft and looked down, squinting. “What’s going on?” his voice heavy with sleep.

“You’re completely useless. That’s what!” Sungyeol yelled up to the fox and looked back down to Woohyun. “You’re lucky that Jureumi was hiding in here,” he declared, pulling out a roll of parchment from his back pocket and tossing it on the floor. It unfurled slightly, revealing names and fleeting footprints traveling across the yellowed background.

It was the Marauder’s Map.

“Now where is that damn cat?”

* * *

The incident that night only cemented the plans formed in Sunggyu’s head. They had to go somewhere else, somewhere secluded and safe and rural. So they left Hogwarts early in the morning without saying goodbye to anyone. Sunggyu saw a small tear drip down in the air, coming from Woohyun’s eye no doubt.

They also had to go back into Woohyun’s house to gather up a few things he had forgotten earlier and to prepare for a more extensive leave. Sunggyu decided to accompany him this time, hidden under the ‘invisibility cloak.’

“How long are we going to be gone, Gyu-hyung?” Woohyun asked rummaging under his bed, tossing some things aside in his search.

“I don’t know, but it’ll be more than a week,” he replied, putting some items Woohyun had thrown to him into the messenger bag. He also put a few things that he thought looked interesting, like q-tips and a rubber ducky.

Woohyun got up with a start. “I’ll need my bank book. Hyung, can you look in that drawer? I think I left it in there,” he asked as he walked over to his dresser to grab some more underwear.

Sunggyu pulled open the desk drawer hesistantly, afraid something would pop out (because that’s what typically happened when he went through his uncle’s things). “I don’t even know what I’m looking for,” he complained as he sift through a stack of papers.

“You’ll know it when you see it. It says ‘Bank…Book,’” he pronounced as if the other was slow.

Sunggyu held back his biting remark and put that energy into his search. Then he saw it. It wasn’t the bank book. He still had no idea what that looked like, but this, this he was very familiar with. He had gotten his own 14 years ago, and the signature on it was unmistakable: Professor Jang Dongwoo.

“Hyun?” he called out in a shaky voice.

“Yea.”

“I…I think you’re a wizard.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> About Sungyeol being in Slytherin: I mean no offense. I wanted to change the stereotype of the house.
> 
> Besides Slytherin's are known for their cunning and doing whatever they needed to win. For that, I'll refer you to the "Beat Hoya" episode of "This is Infinite," in which he basically said he'd do anything to win.
> 
> The next chapter will be the last.


	4. I trust [him] with my life.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The finale

“I…I think that you’re a wizard.”

“Huh? What?” Woohyun got up from his knees after searching under his bed. As he stood up, he saw Sunggyu looking at a yellowed piece of paper with a stunned expression. Woohyun chuckled. He had a similar expression when he had first received the letter on his eleventh birthday. “Oh, hyung, that’s just a gag gift from my parents for my 11th birthday. But it’s not real,” Woohyun explained as he walked over to Sunggyu, putting one hand on his shoulder while the other tore the letter from Sunggyu’s (surprisingly tight) grip. After freeing the letter, Woohyun shook it in front of the wizard’s face. “See it even has Dumbledore’s name wrong. It says Jang…Dong…woo,” the muggle (well I guess now wizard, or always was a wizard but was ignorant of it…something like that) read and let go of it out of his now slack hand. The page fluttered down to his foot. “F**k,” he cussed under his breath. His thoughts were now racing a mile a minute, each notion crashing into each other causing nothing but confusion. Woohyun couldn’t sort this out. He couldn’t understand. His world fell to ruin like that letter fell to his feet, silently and suddenly.

Woohyun looked up at Sunggyu, whose worried eyes were searching his friend for any signs of duress, so Woohyun decided to give him one. He grabbed the elder’s shoulders harshly. The indents of his fingers could be clearly seen digging deeper and deeper into the other’s hoodie and flesh. “Hyung…h-how did they know? This…this can’t be real!” Woohyun began in a whisper and ended with a loud shout, shaking his hyung with every word. Angry spit flew onto Sunggyu’s cheeks, but he didn’t even lift a finger to wipe them.

But he did remove Woohyun’s hands from his shoulders because (dear God) that was hurting him. Unlike his friend, Sunggyu tried to remain cool and collected about this. He took in a deep breath and slowed his mind to analyze the new information, but things still weren’t adding up. “It might not be real. Just one big coincidence,” he gently proposed and bent over to pick up the letter.  There was a chance, the slightest and most flimsy, that the letter could have been a forgery. After all, his uncle couldn’t be the only Jang Dongwoo on the planet; Dongwoo is a fairly common name. Also to a Korean non-fan of the series, Dumbledore might be misremembered as Dongwoo, something a bit more familiar. It all could be proven with a simple analysis of the signature at the bottom of the letter. That this was all just a misunderstanding…but damn it to Hell, that signature was authentic.

But as he was analyzing the letter, something else caught the half-demon’s sharp eyes: the name at the top in large, green characters. “Wait…Shit!” Sunggyu cursed, raising clenched fists to his temples, punishing himself for overlooking this. He had forgotten (or not even paid attention to) Woohyun’s last name. Sunggyu gestured with an open palm to the top of the letter as he explained, “You’re a Nam.”

“No shit,” Woohyun quickly responded. He was now crouching on the floor, not knowing how he ended up there. His knees probably folded in shock. He couldn’t even laugh at the fact that Sunggyu was talking to him as if he was still standing upright. Distress had soaked through his entire being. “Hyung!”

“No, you’re a  _Nam_ ,” the half-demon repeated. His hands fell down to his side, and his eyes to the floor (the shout gave away Woohyun’s current position). He squatted in front of his friend. And Woohyun did not like the look on his face one bit. It reminded him back to the time he had swallowed the potion. Sunggyu was still calculating in his mind, but what he had concluded so far was not good for his friend. His face was painted with guilt and pity. “Nams. One of the oldest wizard families. But they…” the thought was left hanging in the air. He squinted his eyes as they tried to absorb every visible detail of his friend. Of what he could see and could remember (and what he could recall of the Nams), Woohyun, he didn’t seem like the type.  _This doesn’t make any sense._

The realization finally hit Woohyun like a strike of lightening. He bolted upright, knocking Sunggyu over. “W-WHAT?! I’m…I’m…I’m a…” he stuttered. His brain was still reeling from the hit.

Sunggyu stood up, rubbing his now sore bottom, but he ignored the pain for the most part. He had more things to worry about. “Hyun, are you okay?” he asked as his hand searched through the air for his shoulder. The boy was surprisingly still, too calm and silent. In fact, Sunggyu couldn’t even hear a breath pass through his friend’s lips. “Woohyun! Are you breathing? Breathe!”

Woohyun inhaled sharply only to give voice to a large shout, “DAD! MOM!” The shoulder slipped from underneath Sunggyu’s hand, and the bedroom door flew open with a loud slam. Angry steps could be heard racing down the hall.

“Woohyun! NO! You’re still—“ Sunggyu called after no one. It was too late. By the sound of it, Woohyun was already downstairs. “F**k!” the half-demon exclaimed as he threw off the invisibility cloak to chase after his friend.

***

“Woohyun? Woohyun-ah?” Mrs. Nam burst into the kitchen and was frantically looking around, searching under the counters, in the pantry, and even in her cupboards. “Are you home?” she asked, pulling herself upright after looking around the refrigerator. She heard the kitchen door behind her swing open. She turned around expectedly, but all of her hopes fluttered away as she was meet by the aged face of her husband. She gritted her teeth. “I swear I didn’t imagine it this time, honey. Don’t say I’m imagining things again,” Mrs. Nam warned, wagging a finger at her husband.

But he wasn’t paying any attention to the accusing digit. Instead, his eyes were squinting as they scanned the room. “No, I think I hear it too,” he quietly admitted.

Woohyun was watching all of this from the foot of the stairs. His blood was boiling, and his frown was deepening by the second. He stomped into the kitchen, and his parents’ heads snapped in his direction, following the sudden crash. “You lied to me,” he growled.

His mother took a hesitant step forward. Her thinning eyebrows furrowed as she analyzed the seemingly empty space in front of her. “Woohyun? Woohyunnie, where are you?”

“Why didn’t you tell me that we were wizards?” Woohyun shouted in response, not able to contain it anymore.

His father now stepped forward. His eyes grew by the passing second. He knew. “Woohyun? Are you…”

“Pissed off? Angry? Feeling betrayed?” their son yelled, hand over his aching heart.

Unbeknownst to them, Sunggyu had slowly made his way down the stairs. But the Nams eyes soon drifted from where their son was to Sunggyu, who was just a few steps behind. He awkwardly smiled and cleared his throat. “Um, hi,” he greeted with a small voice, waving with his hand that was holding his bathrobe. He stepped closer to them, furling the robe. “I’m just going to,” he narrated as he gently rested the robe on Woohyun’s shoulders, who quickly put it on. Sunggyu then stepped to the side, getting out of the way. “He’s just a little…invisible right now,” finally giving voice to Mr. Nam’s fears.

“Honey, go tell everybody that we’re closing for the day.”

* * *

The four of them were now in the dining area. The Nams were sitting at a table, the parents on one side holding each other’s hands, and Woohyun on the other with his arms crossed over his chest. Sunggyu could hear his friend grind his teeth all the way from the barstool at the counter, where the half-demon was sitting. His eyes flickered towards the door, contemplating an escape because this was one of the most awkward situations of his whole life, but then he looked back at his friend. Although he was still invisible, it was obvious that Woohyun was seething right now; he was angry, confused, and most of all hurt.  _Nam Woohyun is transparent in more ways than one._

“Woohyun, son,” Mr. Nam began, but then he stopped just as soon, shaking his head. “I don’t even know where to begin,” he confessed with a shrug.

Woohyun knew where they could start. “Why?”

“It might be better if I show you,” his father stated and stood up from his chair. Woohyun had expected him to leave the room to retrieve something, like a magical item or photo. Or maybe hoped would be a better word. Because the truth was unbearable. Mr. Nam stayed standing at the table and untied his apron strings as he spoke, “ I…I’m too embarrassed to say it. I was young, and it was a mistake.” He took off the apron, and Sunggyu could see beads of sweat forming on his flushed face. He was nervous. Mr. Nam’s hands went to the collar of his shirt, unbuttoning the buttons slowly. His hands were shaking like his voice, “And there were circumstances that were bigger than me. I admit that…”

“Dad!” Woohyun shut his eyes as soon as he saw his father lift up the hem of his shirt, exposing his hairy beer belly. His son slammed the table with a tight fist. “This isn’t the time to be taking off your shirt. I’m not in the mood for one of your stupid jokes,” Woohyun spat. And Sunggyu cocked his head, questioning Mr. Nam’s sense of humor, but then he remembered about the nature of the Nams. He swallowed hard, and his eyes fastened to that robe seat at the table.  _No._

“But…you need to see this,” Mr. Nam insisted and quickly lifted his shirt up and over his head before Woohyun could utter any other objections. The middle aged man then turned around, showing off his back to his son. And Woohyun realized that in his 24 years, he had never really noticed, had never really seen this before. A large tattoo was etched into his father’s wide back, black and sinister. Two dragons were fighting each other, spitting black fire onto the shoulder blades and claws digging into each other’s scales. They coiled against each other, but in the center was the point of their struggle, what they were fighting over. The dragons were winding protectively around two crossed wands.

“F**k,” Sunggyu muttered, and the three Nams faced him. The father was putting back on his shirt with a defeated and embarrassed expression. The mother looked just as sad, and her hand went to caress her husband’s arm. But Woohyun, on the other hand, was confused.

“I don’t understand,” he confessed, not even looking at his father for the answer (his trust in him was quickly fading), but towards Sunggyu.

Sunggyu bit his lip, holding back the answer for as long as he could. His eyes were glued onto the messenger bag in his lap. “The dark mark,” he mumbled. “Your father was a…”

And the trust was now gone. “Dad!” Woohyun exclaimed, jumping up from the table and sending his chair crashing down onto the floor. Woohyun shook his head and pinched himself, hoping that this was a dream, a nightmare, and not his reality. “No, no, no…this isn’t right. There’s no way you’re a Death Eater,” disappointment was dripping from every word.

 “I  _was_ ,” Mr. Nam stressed the last word. He stepped around the table and faced Woohyun, darting eyes searching for his son. “Like I said, son, it was a mistake,” he said dejectedly.

“A mistake?!” Woohyun yelled and laughed condescendingly. “Burning rice is a mistake. Spilling something is a mistake. Forgetting a birthday is a mistake.” He stepped away from his father, putting up a hand between them. “This…this is just wrong,” he hissed. Woohyun could hear his blood rushing in his ears. His heart was beating angrily and quick. His knuckles turned white as his hands clenched into a fist, doing everything in his power to hold back from attacking his father. So he launched a verbal assault. “What have you done? How could you? Why? WHY?”

Mr. Nam backed down, frightened by his sons angry shouts. “I don’t know how to explain it. I didn’t have a choice,” his voice was timid. He took in a deep breath before confessing, “So I ran away and started new life, away from the world that corrupted me. I didn’t want my mistake to haunt you for the rest of your life. I did it to protect you,” his voice raised as he spoke, as if the louder he spoke then the more sincere his words would seem. But at this point, with his emotions grabbing hold and sinking their fangs in, everything Woohyun hear d sounded like a lie.

“Protect me?” A strange cackle ripped through the air. Woohyun clutched his sides as he buckled over in laughter. When the laughter abated, Woohyun pulled himself straight and gestured to his body, “If you hadn’t noticed, I’M F***ING INVISIBLE!” He walked up to his father and jabbed a finger in his soft chest. “No, you did this for yourself. You knew how I felt. You know what I saw!” he argued and stepped backward. “They wanted me! And you still,” he stopped and shook his head. Then he caught a glimpse of his mother out of the corner of his eye. She was playing the quiet observer, allowing her husband to explain. But she wasn’t without fault either. “And Mom, you…you made go to therapy,” Woohyun reminded her, his voice cracking.

His mother finally got up and walked over to her son, grabbing at the terrycloth. She ran her hand down the length of his forearm until it reached her son’s hand. She embraced them. “Woohyun, I didn’t want to, and you were so lonely anyway. I thought it would help,” the words escaped slowly from her mouth. She was unsure of what to do or say.

“No. NO! I…I can’t listen to this anymore.” Woohyun ripped his hand away from his mother’s and used it to cover his ears. That helped with blocking his parents’ voices out, but he could still see their faces and feel his pulse quicken at the sight of them. He had to get out. And within a second, he was already out the door.

“Woohyun!” his mother called after him and was about to follow, but a large hand held her back.

“Honey, let him go,” Mr. Nam spoke, taping her shoulder with his fingers.

Sunggyu took Woohyun’s exit as his cue to leave. Also because they probably shouldn’t worsen the situation by having a floating bathrobe darting through the streets in daylight. They had enough problems. He walked over to the table just abandoned by the Nams, and his hand searched through his messenger bag. “I’m just going to leave this here,” he announced as he pulled out the salve for Mr. Nam’s arthritis (Woohyun made him bring it earlier) and set it on the table. He then stepped in front of the Nams and bowed. “I…I’m sorry. It was nice meeting you,” he stammered. Then he left.

Now, after leaving the restaurant, Sunggyu felt like he could finally breathe again. The overwhelming tension had dissipated, but now panic was starting to set in. Woohyun was gone. Sunggyu narrowed his eyes as he searched the scene. “Now where is he?” he though outloud. But then a tattered terrycloth robe caught his sight. Sunggyu smirked as he bent down to pick it up. “At least he was thinking.” He stuffed it into his bag and stood up. It was a good thing that he knew Woohyun’s scent by heart because that was the only way he’d be able to find him now. Maybe being part gumiho wasn’t so bad.

* * *

Woohyun had the type of temperament that could grow hot quickly, red hot. But he was well aware of it. He knew when it was time to get out and cool down before he’d regret doing something in the heat of the moment. And these were his parents. No matter what they had done to him or to anyone, he couldn’t just break ties with them or maltreat them. But he couldn’t give them the patience they needed. Right now, he wasn’t just red hot; he was boiling like a volcano, with blinding white fury.

 “Woohyun, there you are!” Woohyun looked up to see a relieved Sunggyu. And Woohyun grumbled. Maybe hiding in the alley next to Sunggyu’s apothecary wasn’t the best idea, but he had no idea where else to go. His feet just took him there…and maybe just a small part of him wanted to be found by the other. But now he was starting to regret it. Sunggyu looked like he was about to launch into a lecture as he leaned against the wall next to his friend. “You can’t just run away like that. People are trying to steal you, remember?”

“What? People like my dad?” Woohyun scoffed, looking away from Sunggyu. He nodded. “Let them. It’s probably where I belong anyway. With those kind of people. It’s in my blood, apparently,” he joked darkly, but it did nothing to improve his mood, only darkened it. He then closed his eyes and hit his head against the brick wall, punishing himself as he did it again and again. “God! I can’t believe it. They  _lied_ , Gyu. They lied to me! When I told them about samchon, do you know what they said? That I had an overactive imagination. That  _I_  made it up. They told  _me_ not to lie,” he growled.

Then he felt a hand stopping his head from hitting the wall again. He turned to see Sunggyu looking slightly annoyed. “Hyun, let’s not do this out here. Let’s go inside,” Sunggyu suggest.

“Why?” Woohyun scoffed. “Am I embarrassing you?”

“Yes,” Sunggyu answered quickly and honestly.

Woohyun then pushed the other away and stood up. “Right. Because I’m supposed to be the good, quiet invisible boy. I’m supposed to be everybody’s little secret,” he yelled at the other who was just now getting up. “Well, I’ve had it up to here with stupid secrets. And I’m ready for THE WHOLE WORLD TO-“

A warm hand slapped over his mouth, muffling his words. This was probably the fastest Woohyun had ever seen the other move. Sunggyu was at his back, one hand over his face, while the other arm was wrapped around his waist, pulling through the back entrance of his shop. Once inside, he pushed Woohyun roughly and pointed to the couch.  “No, no you’re not. Now you’re going to sit down, shut up, and just listen, okay?” Woohyun didn’t move. He was challenging the other with his hardened stare. Sunggyu sighed and pulled out his wand from his pocket. “Don’t make me use this on you,” he threatened.

“Jerk,” Woohyun cursed as he lunged towards the half-demon, hand reaching to tear the wand away and maybe break it. But before his fingers grazed the white tip of the wand, red sparks flew from it, sending a shockwave through his fingers traveling through the rest of his body. He felt his joints stiffen, his muscles tightening. He was frozen.

Sunggyu looked in the direction of the other and shook his head. “Don’t say I didn’t warn you,” he added as he walked over to the couch and sat down. His eyes were still glued on his frozen friend. And Woohyun wished that he wasn’t completely immobile because he had a particular gesture in mind that he wanted to give the half-demon, especially since he knew that Sunggyu was about to lecture him. He had held in his thoughts for too long already. And now Woohyun was forced to listen. The conditions were perfect.

“Remember what I said the second time we met?” Sunggyu began. Of course, Woohyun couldn’t answer given that he was petrified, but it was a rhetorical question anyways, so it didn’t matter. “Muggles and wizards aren’t that much different,” Sunggyu answered. “In school, we had to learn about Muggle History because it paralleled our own. And for both kinds, the reasons for joining fascist factions were the same. Most joined because they felt like they had to. They were just following what authorities told them.” He could hear the floorboards creak. Woohyun was slowly gaining his mobility. Sunggyu was surprised that the other wasn’t even trying to protest first thing. _So he’s actually listening. Good_. He continued, “Falling into the wrong crowd doesn’t make you inherently evil, nor does being born into it. And that’s something I had to deal with my whole life. Just because my mother was a demon doesn’t make me one.” The other side of the couch sunk, and a pillow began to hover over the new depression. Woohyun had gotten up and sat next to him, using the pillow to cover his still naked body. But he was still silent, soaking in every word Sunggyu was saying. Sunggyu scooted closer and put a hand on the pillow. Woohyun’s hand slowly snuck over and grabbed a hold of it. His eyes lifted from Sunggyu’s hand to his friend’s eyes. They were oddly smiling. And although confused, Woohyun started to feel the corners of his lips twitch upwards. But he fought it, wanting to be angry for a little longer. Sunggyu kept talking then with a cheery voice, “And your dad is obviously trying to make up for his mistakes. Do you think that he’d be catering to muggles all day, every day if he wasn’t? If he believed in ‘the cause’?” He made it sound so obvious. Like Woohyun was silly for not noticing it too.

And he did feel silly. His father  _was_  a good man. He was hardworking, kind, loyal, and always willing to lend aide to anybody who would need it. Those kind of things were innate and not acquired throughout a lifetime. He was a kind soul.  _And yet_ …“He still lied,” Woohyun argued.

“True,” Sunggyu admitted as he nodded and looked away from his friend to think. He found the answer a bit later. “But does that still make him a bad person? We all lie.”

Woohyun leaned back, his head hanging over the top of the couch. “Especially when we’re trying to protect someone,” he mumbled. He had days earlier when he told his parents that he was having “cooking lessons,” instead of telling them about his true condition. He laughed to himself. That lie was all in vain because they knew about magic anyway.

“Eung,” Sunggyu agreed, giving Woohyun’s hand a squeeze.

Woohyun rolled his head over and studied his friend’s smiling face. “I’m still angry,” he confessed, although he could feel it waning by the moment.

Sunggyu shrugged, “Well, I don’t expect you to be happy about it. It’s kinda messed up, what they did. But at the same time, I sort of understand why they did it.”

They did it to protect him.  _Protect me from what?_  The situation must have been more complicated than Woohyun was aware. But from the way Sunggyu reacted when he realized what family Woohyun belonged to, the fear and confusion on his face, maybe it was to protect him from that. From spending a life of being prejudged: the one good apple on a rotten family tree. From being judged like Sunggyu was his whole life. Woohyun shut his eyes and kicked his legs in frustration. “Me too. Ugh!” he whined. He wanted to be angry for just a little bit longer. But now it was gone. He had been fighting back another emotion for too long, but now it was bettering him. He was excited. He was friggin’ excited. After all, he was a wizard, and his childhood dream has finally come true. ”You know, on the plus side, I am a wizard,” he admitted with a laugh.

Sunggyu laughed too as he playfully nudged the other. “You’re ridiculous.”

Woohyun didn’t even pay heed to that insult. His mind was filling up with all the things he could do now that he’d be waiting his whole life to do. But first things first. “Do you think it’s too late for me to get a wand?” he asked Sunggyu, genuinely worried that the other might say yes.

“Is that all you think about?” Sunggyu retorted.

“Right now…yea,” Woohyun admitted with a giggle (and was a little afraid that Sunggyu hadn’t answered his question).

Sunggyu looked down to his lap, trying to fight back his smile. “You’re so stupid.”

“If I’m so stupid then why did you ask for my help,” Woohyun teased as he leaned against the other.

“Because I’m stupid too,” Sunggyu gave in and pushed the other away. But he wasn’t upset. In fact, Sunggyu was really happy, and now that Woohyun wasn’t angry anymore, Sunggyu felt like he could finally feel excited too. “And you know what else?” he asked.

“I can get a broomstick?!” Of course, that would be Woohyun’s first thought.  “I bet I’d be a good quidditch player. Better than you at least,” he teased again.

“Maybe,” Sunggyu brushed off the comment and confessed with a wide grin, “But now I don’t have to erase your memory!”

“WHAT?!” Woohyun shouted, letting go of his hand.  _Oh, that’s right_ , Sunggyu remembered that Woohyun had no idea of his plan to return Woohyun’s life entirely back to normal, without him.

Sunggyu leaned back, sensing the other’s anger rising again. “Yea, I was going to do it because I wanted you to live a normal life,” he defended himself. “Don’t you remember we just said about protecting people. OW!” A punch landed on his jaw, causing him to fall backwards onto the couch.

“That’s for petrifying me earlier,” Woohyun explained, and then he punched Sunggyu in the gut. “And that’s for lying!”

Sunggyu was rolling on the couch as he whimpered in pain and rubbed his sore stomach. “I didn’t lie. I never said I wasn’t,” he groaned. Then his ears twitched, hearing Woohyun’s giggle. The infuriating high-pitched, barely voiced giggle that was mocking his pain. Sunggyu gritted his teeth, bolted upright, and threw a punch of his own.

Which landed on the couch cushion, sending a bolt of pain shooting through his knuckles.“Haha! You missed,” Woohyun mocked him. This time, Sunggyu tried to follow his voice, and aimed a punch straight for his mouth to shut him up. He ended up falling forward over Woohyun and hitting the arm of the couch. “Missed again. How are you part gumiho? Not like part turtle?” Woohyun joked, shoving the other off of him, still giggling.

And at that, Sunggyu lunged forward; his hands gripped onto Woohyun’s bare shoulders as he pinned them down onto the couch. The elder smirked in triumph, but it soon fled as Woohyun tried to resist, slowing lifting his hands from the couch and wildly bucking to get Sunggyu off of him. Sunggyu miraculously stayed on the couch by letting go of the other and holding onto the cushions. And Woohyun managed to sit back up again, and he was sure that he had the upper hand now. He tried to push the half demon off, but before Woohyun could touch him, Sunggyu blocked his hands with his own. Their hands were now intertwined with each other’s as they both tried to pin the other down, but it was a stalemate. They were moving nowhere. The air was filled with frustrated grunts and huffed out curses, but neither was willing to let the other win. It was a lost cause and a stupid fight.

And that’s when Woohyun remembered Sunggyu’s weakness. He sat up on his knees. Sunggyu had thought that the other was trying to get leverage over him, and so he stood on his knees as well. But that wasn’t Woohyun’s intention. He was trying to get closer. Their knees were in the way earlier, but now he could easily lean over with chin hovering over Sunggyu’s right shoulder and his lips brushing against the quickly reddening and twitching ear. The elder inhaled sharply and fought harder to push the other away, but it was too late. Woohyun blew into his ear. Sunggyu gasped and immediately brought his ear to his shoulder. His whole body froze as the white tails began flowing around him. Woohyun took this opportunity to pin the half-demon down without a struggle. He smiled cockily and whispered breathily into the same ear (just to throw salt into the wound), “Got ya.”

He pulled away not to see Sunggyu still in shock or even peeved, which was what he expected. No, he was smiling almost fondly. “Yea. You got me,” he retorted in a voice just as light.

They say that one can find their partner’s lips in the dark, and the same held true for them. Sunggyu had no idea where Woohyun’s face was, let alone his mouth. But somehow Sunggyu had managed to place his own lips on it perfectly, as if drawn in by some gravitational force, anchoring him to that soft spot. And Woohyun, well, he was surprised. The last time they kissed, it was more like Woohyun just kissing. He had thought the other hated it, but obviously not as now Sunggyu was grabbing the back of his neck trying to pull him in closer, to deepen the kiss. And now Woohyun was the unresponsive one. The corners of Woohyun’s mouth twitched upwards into a small smile before returning his hyung’s affection with his own. Never did he think things would turn out this way (he had hoped but still didn’t believe it would). But now that they did, Woohyun knew only one word to describe this moment. Magical.

Sunggyu was kissing Woohyun as if the demon inside of him wanted to devour the other’s soul, sucking it out through his mouth, like a Dementor’s Kiss. And Woohyun was prepared to give it to him, allowing the elder not only to search his mouth but also to run his hands up and down his uncovered skin. Only the pillow (which Woouhyun used to cover himself earlier) was separating their bodies. And Woohyun could feel his skin prickle against the other’s touch, but he was preoccupied himself. His own fingers were gently running through the soft fur of the half-demon’s tails, feeling them twitch in sensitivity. But he paid that no heed and ran his hand down lower, curious about the juncture of where the tails and the body meet. Sunggyu let out slight yelp and wiggled uncomfortably when Woohyun had finally reached the spot (and maybe tugged at a tail a little). Woohyun pulled back a bit to give the other an apologetic chuckle. And there was the peeved expression that Woohyun had been expecting for awhile.

Woohyun was leaning down again to make that hard face disappear, and it was already softening as he got closer. But then a fast-paced drumbeat filled the room, followed by various electronic sounds and the high voices of female idols. Woohyun’s phone rang. He glanced over to the coffee table where it rested.  It was his parents. He immediately sighed and sat up. The hand resting on his knee was twitching, wanting to grab his phone, but he could feel his blood pressure rising.  _Or is that from…_ his eyes drifted over to Sunggyu who was also staring at the phone. The elder then turned to face him. “Answer it,” he spoke sternly. Woohyun shook his head and didn’t move. Two seconds later, he found himself on the floor. Sunggyu had pushed him  off with his feet. “Answer it. And, uh, ahem, put some clothes on,” he said with a cough, looking away.

Woohyun chuckled as he reached for the phone. “You weren’t complaining about that earlier, hyung,” he retorted as he stood up. He answered the phone as he searched through Sunggyu’s messenger bag for his clothes that he discarded earlier.

“Hello? No, I’m not angry. Well not really. Yes, Mom, I understand. No, no. Don’t cry. It’s not your fault, Dad.”

* * *

Woohyun learned it all that night from his parents. How his father was from a rather large and prominent family that prided themselves on being pureblooded, with a family history that could be traced back to one of the eight daughters of Pobu Hwasang and the Holy Mother (which Woohyun remembered vaguely from his father telling him old stories about the mudang as a child). How when his father was 17 and graduating from Hogwarts, the Wizard War broke out, and members of his family were some of the instigators, which he had learned upon his return home and accidentally stumbling into a meeting of Death Eaters. His grandfather, then at that very moment, forced him to swear an oath of allegiance to Gangrim Doryung, their leader. Woohyun’s father truly had no choice as his own father forced himself unto his knees in front of Gangrim and with a hand gripping his hair bowed in supplication. He repeated the words harshly hissed into his ear by hooded figures, not knowing what he was doing or saying. He had been blissfully ignorant of the whole matter up to this point. The bubble that was Hogwarts protected him from the harsh reality, but that bubble burst as soon as he graduated. Woohyun’s father could still perfectly recall the searing pain of the Dark Mark being soaked into his back, forever marking him.

“I knew my father was, how should I say it…hateful,” Mr. Nam spoke with a resigned tone over the phone. “He would always make comments about Mudbloods and people who didn’t belong. About stupid muggles. And I just ignored them, but I guess that I didn’t know how far that hate extended.”

And it extended very far. Woohyun’s grandfather was not only a Death Eater, but the right hand man to Gangrim, which was why it was important for him to have every single member of his family swear allegiance to the villain. “In the back of my mind, I was thinking, ‘Yes. I’ll pretend to be on their side, but I’ll break this group from within. Foil all of their plans. I’ll be a hero’…but I forgot to take into account how much of  a coward I really am,” he admitted with a sad chuckle. And so Mr. Nam faithfully attended all of his father’s meetings, all of the talks with Gangrim, but he would do so in complete silence and distance. He never spoke. Never responded. Never volunteered. Never participated. Until one fateful night, Gangrim personally assigned him a mission.

“Because I was the youngest recruit and recently graduated, they chose me to sneak back into Hogwarts to plant portrait in the headmaster’s office. My father said it was so they could spy on the professor. I thought it harmless enough. So I agreed,” he sighed. Disappointment in himself was evident in that dragging breath. “I remember walking into the office. I can still recall every word of the conversation that I had with the headmaster. I told him that I was interested in becoming a professor. He gave me advice and told me I had potential. That he could see me seated next to him on that long table with the rest of the professors in the Great Hall.” He paused to clear his throat. Woohyun shifted in his seat. Half of him was glad that they weren’t having this conversation in person. If Woohyun had seen his father’s face, he might’ve gotten angrier, or possibly cried (like it sounded like the old man might’ve been doing with his straining voice). Because Woohyun could tell where this story was heading.

“What happened next?”

Mr. Nam was almost taken aback hearing his son’s voice for the first time in awhile, but he still continued. “It wasn’t a portrait…it was a portal. Big enough for a young basilisk to slither through and just kill him upon sight…He…Professor was just admiring it, saying how unique it was. Then, nothing. A silent and quick death.” Mr. Nam breathed in deeply before continuing, “And that’s when I realized that it was a suicide mission. My father hadn’t told me about the basilisk. He didn’t give me any wards. He knew that I didn’t care for the cause. And then I knew he didn’t care much for me either. I barely made it out alive. I walked out of there with my eyes closed tightly, shouting at everyone what had just happened. What I had done.”

Even though he was blind, Mr. Nam still managed to detain the basilisk in the office, and with his shouts, he alerted all of the professors. The issue was quickly resolved. No one else died, save for the headmaster. And after hearing his story, they offered him sanctuary at the school and gave him a spare room. They even promised to circulate the news that he had died along with the headmaster, giving him a fresh start.

But it was too late. His faith in people and in magic was shaken to the core. He knew that it would only be a matter of weeks until they begged him to be a double agent, rejoin the Death Eaters, and spy on his father. “Even though I could easily betray my father, I wanted nothing more than to see him suffer, but…the rest of my brothers. They didn’t have a choice either. We were all pawns. And even though I was offered clemency, the same couldn’t go for them. They had done worse. Even though they were forced, they still committed worse crimes than I did. Besides, Gangrim was a terrifying man. I never wanted to see or hear about him again.” And so he snuck out that very night, with nothing with him except for the clothes on his back, a few  sickles, and the wand in his pocket. And the wand, he would have broke, if he didn’t need it for survival.

And so he stumbled for days in the countryside with only the light from the tip of his wand to guide him, and with only the food he could scavenge to eat. But he couldn’t continue like that for long, and he fainted on the fifth day in an open field.

“And that’s where I found him,” Mrs. Nam said in a light voice. For her, this was a fond memory, even if it did have dark beginnings. “I was on a school trip, cataloguing wildlife. And that’s when I stumbled onto this creature,” she joked. “Some of my classmates brought home flowers, others butterflies and other insects. But I brought home a wizard.” Her laughter lightened up the mood, even though Woohyun was blocks away.

To her parents, Mr. Nam feigned amnesia, only able to recall his name because it was etched into his robes. But to his future wife, he had told everything. “And I was only 15 at the time, so I believed everything he said,” his mother added. “And he was also wearing strange clothes, so I thought that he must really be a wizard or he thinks himself to be one.”

“And that’s when I transfigured that necklace for you,” Mr. Nam interjected, and Woohyun knew which one he was talking about: the simple silver chain necklace with a pendent in the shape of a lock. His mother never took it off (or when she did, it wasn’t for long).

Woohyun’s mother happily hummed over the line. “That’s right! It used to be a door handle, didn’t it?” She laughed. “It was our little secret.”

“And your door was always open to me…literally,” Mr. Nam joked.

“Yea, my parents weren’t too happy about that.”

“As much as I enjoy this trip down memory lane,” Woohyun interjected. “What about me? Why did you hide it from me? And for so long.”

There was a long pause over the line. He  could hear his father’s breaths growing longer as he gathered his thoughts. “I gave up on magic,” Mr. Nam put simply. “I had no intention of going back. I was dead to that world, and it was dead to me. But when you got the letter…I was scared. I never thought it would happen. I never thought that they would find me. But they did, and I panicked. So when you said the letter was a fake, I went along with it. And I thought that was the end of it.”

“Until  _that_  man paid us a visit,” his mother muttered.

“Who?”

“Professor Jang,” Mr. Nam answered. “He was adamant about you attending. He said that he wanted to remove the black stain from our name, and that you were the one to do it, which scared me even more because not only did he know where we lived but he  _knew_ us. And so I declined again. And he left, but not before he found you.”

Everything his parents had done after Woohyun had told them about the silver haired wizard was damage control. They were too deep in their lie to back out now. His mother suggested therapy after a month of seeing Woohyun come home with tears in his eyes. “It wasn’t really because of the wizard thing, but I didn’t know what was wrong or how to help. So I lied to the doctor, said that you had a ‘vivid imagination.’ And I just thought that they would help out with the other things as well. Woohyun-ah, please don’t be mad with me. I just didn’t know what to do!” She was crying at this point, and Woohyun tried to soothe her.

Woohyun couldn’t be mad, especially after hearing everything. His father was practically a child at the time, and for the things his parents had done to him, well, the good outweighed the bad. Sure, they weren’t the wealthiest family, but they were rich in love. There was no doubt in his mind that they thought that they were doing their best for him. And it wasn’t like spending life as a muggle was bad either. His father even preferred it. But Woohyun didn’t.

“Would…would you guys hate me if I went back? If I became a wizard?” Woohyun fumbled through his question. It was best just to ask everything now, since they were being so honest with each other.

“Woohyun-ah, I could  _never_  hate you. I just didn’t want you to hate me, so I stopped you before. But if it’s really what you want, go. I won’t stop you anymore,” his father yielded.

“Really? I can?” Woohyun lifted his head and asked excitedly. It’s not like he needed his parents’ permission to be who he was, but it was nice to have it anyway.

“Of course, we love you no matter what. Wizard or muggle,” his mother spoke in her gentle voice. “Speaking of which, Sunggyu seems like a nice kid…even though he turned you invisible.”

“Yea,” Woohyun said with a small smile. “Yea he is.”

* * *

They ended the conversation shortly afterwards, and a few entreaties from his mother to come back home and a few curses from his father because he felt helpless to Woohyun’s situation (he’d forgotten practically every spell except Lumnos and his wand was misplaced). But Woohyun assured them (and perhaps himself) that he was in capable hands.  _Tsk! Capable hands my ass_ , he joked to himself as he turned off the phone and found Sunggyu laying on the couch while telling (or yelling at) Dwaeji the spots he missed on the cauldron across the room.

“My parents say hi, and they apologized for earlier,” he said as he approached the couch. He pushed aside Sunggyu’s legs so that he could sit on it too, but the other’s legs weren’t on the floor for long because right as Woohyun sat down, Sunggyu laid his legs over the other’s lap. But Woohyun didn’t mind, and rested on hand on the calf. “So where are we going next?” he asked, giving the calf a sharp slap.

Sunggyu just nestled his head further into his pillow as he reluctantly answered, “Home.”

* * *

Woohyun woke up to Sunggyu lightly shaking him, and when that didn’t work, he lightly pushed Woohyun off the bed. He announced that he already packed everything for their trip. “How are we getting there?” Woohyun asked, intentionally tripping Sunggyu as he walked across the room. And now the both of them were on the floor of the bedroom.

The half-demon sneered, glaring at the ghost of a man in front of him. But then he  quickly looked down sheepishly. “Actually that’s where you come in.”

Driving, Woohyun was going to drive them to Sunggyu’s home, which was baffling. Wouldn’t floo powder be more appropriate? Or apparating? Even a mangy boot as a portkey would make more sense. However, Sunggyu insisted that it was too far to apparate there and that driving would be more discrete. And then he ranted for a bit on how it was weird that Woohyun knew so much about wizard transportation, which was okay because Woohyun ended up laughing for a while when he learned that Sunggyu knew so little about muggle transportation. The half-demon almost strangled himself trying to buckle himself into the car. “Hyung,” Woohyun chuckled as he grabbed the buckle from Sunggyu and put it in with a click. “Have you ever been in a car before?”

After muttering thanks, Sunggyu answered, “Once, with Samchon. I almost died.” He closed his eyes and shivered at the memory of the headmaster being so easily distracted behind the wheel, eyes everywhere but on the road, causing them to almost crash into the guardrail. After that, Professor Jang never drove again because he had ‘lost’ his keys (but Sunggyu knew exactly where they were, at the bottom of the Han River).

Woohyun laughed even more at that. “Why am I not surprised?” he retorted. He then let out a deep breath as he caressed the steering wheel of his parents’ car underneath his hands. It had been a while since he drove, and he was slowly growing nervous, especially since he had no idea where they were going. “Uh, where is your house, hyung?”

“I don’t know.”

“You don’t know?!” Woohyun was shocked.

Sunggyu huffed, “I know the address, but I just don’t know how to get there.” He then began to jab his finger at the consol. “Isn’t there a thing that tells you stuff? Don’t muggle cars have something like that,” he was attempting to explain for Woohyun who was staring at him blankly. Words were failing him though, and he kept pointing to the consol to replace the words he couldn’t find. “The direction thing!”

Woohyun couldn’t fight back the smile anymore. He was enjoying seeing Sunggyu working himself up into a fit. It was cute. Woohyun slapped the other’s hand away, and with a twist of his wrist, the car turned on.  He then pressed some buttons on the screen, bringing it to life. “You mean a GPS,” he teased.

“Isn’t that what I said?” Sunggyu insisted as he leaned back into his seat, adjusting his seatbelt. “Besides,” he began, eyeing Woohyun curiously. “Aren’t you forgetting something?”

“Yea, what’s your address, hyung?” Woohyun didn’t even spare the other a glance as he tried to start the GPS.

“I’m talking about the invisible man driving the car,” the half-demon argued. Then he leaned over to look at Woohyun entering things into the touch screen. Sunggyu bit his lip in thought. It looked just like Woohyun’s smart phone. He could possibly do this. “Let me do it,” he declared as he tried and pressed his finger on the screen. It suddenly turned off. “Ah! Where did it go? I don’t like this.”

Woohyun giggled pulling up his hood over his hat and bringing up the mask around his neck over his mouth.  And he was almost sad to put the sunglasses over his eyes because the shaded lens; he could no longer see the frustrated blush on Sunggyu’s face. Then his friend cheered after successfully putting in his address. He turned towards Woohyun to show off his latest triumph, but then he caught sight of the new wizard and laughed. “Pretending to be a celebrity again?”

“I’m handsome enough to be one,” he retorted. Then his throat tightened after catching a glimpse of himself in the review mirror out of the corner of his eye. He saw the empty space below his chin where his neck should be. He zipped up his hoodie higher.

This didn’t escape from Sunggyu’s sharp eyes.  “How are you feeling?” he asked, leaning back into his seat, feigning disinterest in spite of his question.

Woohyun sighed as he put the car into drive. “Tired.”

“That’s not what I meant,” Sunggyu said with a roll of his eyes. “I meant about your parents.”

Woohyun pressed a little too hard on the gas pedal, causing them to pull out of the driveway with a start. His grip tightened on the wheel. A night wasn’t long enough to eradicate these feelings, just to diminish them slightly. “Still a little hurt, but we’re good,” he admitted. He was glad that his parents didn’t try to see them off. Even they knew that Woohyun just needed some time. Maybe Sunggyu’s place would have more than one cure in store for him. He glanced over at Sunggyu, who was clutching onto the handle on the car door. The half-demon was having flashbacks to the last time that he was in a car. He was so distracted that he hardly noticed that Woohyun hadn’t stopped talking, but his keen hearing soon picked up on his friend’s distressed tone, “I’m just sick of people hiding things from me, you know. It’s like I’m the last person to learn about everything recently…It makes me feel stupid.”

“You’re not stupid,” Sunggyu said, rolling his head over on the headrest to look at Woohyun.

The corner of his mouth twitched underneath the mask. “I know, but I still feel like it,” Woohyun confessed.

“You didn’t let me finish,” the half-demon retorted mischievously. “You’re not stupid _all_ the time.”

This time, Woohyun meant to hit the brake too hard. Sunggyu squeaked feeling the seatbelt jerk him back into his seat. “Jerk,” Woohyun tried to grumble angrily, despite his smile underneath the mask.

“But if people are hiding things to protect you, is that really bad?” Sunggyu argued, smacking his lips. His mouth was suddenly dry now. About some things, Woohyun was still in the dark, and Sunggyu wasn’t sure if shedding light on it, allowing his friend to see the whole situation clearly, was a wise idea. “Ignorance is bliss, right?” _It’s better if he doesn’t know_.

“Ignorance is ignorance,” Woohyun snapped back. His gaze flickered from the road to the other, who was staring out of the window. _He’s distant again_. Woohyun focused back on the road. “Why? Are you hiding something from me?” He heard a thud and turned to see Sunggyu’s face flush against the window. His heavy breaths were fogging glass. Woohyun grabbed his shoulder and shook him. “Aish! I know you’re not asleep. You’re not fooling anyone. Wake up!” he commanded. But Sunggyu was either fully committed to the bit, or he actually did fall asleep. Woohyun wasn’t really sure which one it was. “Hmmm…maybe you are asleep,” he mused, leaning closer to his hyung. “Have sweet dreams, hyung. Dream of me,” he whispered. Sunggyu then hid his face, sputtering into a short laugh. Woohyun jokingly grabbed Sunggyu’s collar. “Yah! I knew it. You’re not sleeping.”

Sunggyu twisted Woohyun’s wrists from his collar. “I’m trying, but you keep talking. It’s annoying,” he fought back, leaning back against the window. He closed his eyes again. They woke up too early this morning.

“You can’t sleep,” Woohyun whined, shaking his friend again. “I don’t even know where I’m going!” Was only part of the reason why he didn’t want the elder to fall asleep. It would be quiet if Sunggyu was asleep. And if it was quiet, Woohyun would start to feel lonely. And if he started to feel lonely, well, he wouldn’t like it.

Sunggyu scoffed and tapped the consol. “Isn’t that what this box is for?”

“This box,” Woohyun mimicked the other. “HA! It’s a GPS, hyung. You sound like an old man.”

The half-demon crossed his arms over his chest and turned his body towards the other so that he could glare at him better. “Well, you’re-“

“Turn left in one kilometer,” an oddly calm woman’s voice interrupted.

Sunggyu snapped his head, looking about him for the source of the voice. “Where did that come from?” His eyes fell on the consol, and he leaned forward until his nose touched the screen.  “From here?” he asked Woohyun, but then he grew too impatient and pointed at the GPS. “Can you talk? Yah! Answer me!” But of course, any muggle could tell you that a GPS never answers you and only barks out orders (huh, sounds familiar). The half-demon then began pushing all the buttons around it, trying to make it talk again. “This box is rude.”

 _Old man_ , Woohyun thought with a sigh. He batted the elder’s hands away, and it took a while because Sunggyu was being weirdly persistent. “You’re gonna break it,” his voice sounded gruff, but he was grinning brightly which made his words sound less harsh. And Sunggyu could tell.

* * *

“You have reached your destination.”

“No way.” Woohyun’s jaw unhinged, and he pulled the stifling mask from his face. “Hyung…you live in the middle of friggin’ nowhere,” he said in amazement. He then scanned his friend who was now opening the passenger door and sliding out of the car. Sunggyu was dressed in jeans with more rips and holes than necessary, a shirt that probably cost more than necessary too, and his signature beanie covering his shaved head. And yet, at heart, he was a country bumpkin in spite of his ‘edgy’ look. Woohyun chuckled, watching the half-demon breath in the fresh mountain air. This place suited him more than that grungy and cluttered apothecary. This place was bright.

“Yah, you coming?” Sunggyu stuck his head back into the car and brought back Woohyun from his trance. Then the small smile the elder had fell. “A-are you scared?” The thought hadn’t crossed Sunggyu’s mind. All he thought that he was  removing Woohyun from all the dangers of the wizard world. _But I’m leading him right into the fox’s den_.

Woohyun scoffed. “Please, your parents will love me. Why should I be scared?”

“R-right,” the elder stuttered and extricated himself from the car again. He had to tell him. Sunggyu watched Woohyun get out of the car, taking off his sunglasses and hat. He disappeared into the background. Sunggyu felt a lump forming in his throat. “There’s something I need to tell you,” he confessed.

His friend froze in his spot. “What?”

“I…uh…haven’t been home in 2 years,” Sunggyu admitted. It wasn’t what he was planning on divulging to Woohyun, but it was the truth. “So my mom might go overboard.”

Woohyun chuckled as the two of them walked up to the front door. Then a sudden thought crossed his mind. He _should_ have been scared meeting Sunggyu’s family, a house full of demons. Sure, his mother was now human, but she still could have some lingering demonic tendencies. And Woohyun was very tempting, or so he told himself. He then quickly crammed the sunglasses and mask back onto his face as if they could serve as some sort of protection. He even tied the hoodie strings tightly under his chin.

But before Sunggyu could question his friend’s bizarre behavior, the front door swung open. A tall, lean woman with long black hair and white skin. A smirk appeared on her red lips. Her dark brown eyes were glued onto Sunggyu with an unreadable expression. Before the woman could lecture Sunggyu, like he expected, Woohyun stepped forward and put forth his transparent hand.  “You must be hyung’s mother! It’s nice to meet you!” he greeted.

The woman looked down at the outstretched arm and then stared back at Woohyun through the sunglasses. A pink tongue darted out and wet her lips. Woohyun felt his throat constrict, and he couldn’t breathe.  But  then the woman tossed her black hair over her shoulder and scoffed, “Rude.” She then turned around and left.

A snort came from his side. He looked over to see Sunggyu laughing hysterically. The half demon grabbed Woohyun’s shoulder to keep him from falling over. “Stupid, that was my sister,” he choked out. Woohyun frowned. How was he supposed to know that? All he knew was that Sunggyu’s mother was a gumiho, and his sister fit the description. He shrugged a still laughing Sunggyu off of him and brought back his leg, prepared to kick the other, but then a cry came from within the house.

“My baby!”

Sunggyu stopped laughing and perked up. And in under two seconds, a middle-aged woman with graying hair and soft wrinkles came out and enveloped the half-demon in a tight hug. “Oof,” he grunted under the pressure. “This is my mom.” Woohyun looked at her with his mouth agape. She looked so…normal. She looked similar to his own mother, around the same age, but just with lighter eyes.

She pulled away from her son and cupped his cheeks.  “How’s my baby doing? Are you eating okay?” she asked and Sunggyu nodded. But she shook her head and sighed sadly, “You’re face is half its size.” She gave his cheeks a couple of pats and let them go. “Don’t worry. Mama will take care of you.” She then  grabbed Sunggyu’s hand and began to lead him into the house, but before she crossed the threshold, she turned to face Woohyun, who thought that he had been forgotten, still invisible although he was covered from head to toe. She took a step towards him and grabbed his hand as well. It didn’t feel weird or scaly or hairy, or however Woohyun thought a demon’s hand should feel like. It was soft and warm. “And you must be Woohyunnie,” she said gently with a warm smile. “You’re the first friend my son has ever brought home.”

“Really?” Woohyun asked as he allowed himself to be led into the house.

Mrs. Kim shot Woohyun a deep pout. “You’d think he’s ashamed of me or something.”

“Mom!” Sunggyu whined, tearing his hand away from his mother’s. After all, he was a grown man. He didn’t need to hold his mommy’s hand anymore. He then shot her a glare as if he was saying ‘Can we not get into this right now?’

His mother stepped away and put her hands in the air, reading her son’s thoughts. “Right, right,” she relented. But she was still holding Woohyun’s hand, who might’ve been a little too scared to do anything that might provoke her (also it felt nice). She gave it a squeeze with both of her hands before letting go. “Make yourself at home,” she urged, gesturing to their living room. “Dinner will be ready soon.” Then she ran off into what Woohyun supposed was the kitchen.

And while Woohyun was watching his mother, Sunggyu noticed the old man, sitting in a large chair and swirling a tumbler in his hands as he read from the Daily Prophet. Sunggyu smirked as he walked over, took the chilled glass from his father, and set it on the side table. “You know, that’s not good for your liver,” he warned the old man in a joking tone.

His father looked over, slightly surprised to see his son in front of him. But shock soon morphed into happiness as he smiled and folded the newspaper. “I’m old, son. Nothing’s good for my liver,” he retorted and placed the newspaper on the table. Then he stood up and gave Sunggyu a short but strong hug. “Good to see you. Oh, who’s this?” he asked, blinking at Woohyun.

Woohyun stepped forward, with his hand thrust into the air. “Nam Woohyun, sir,” he introduced himself.

It took a couple of tries until Mr. Kim found Woohyun’s hand. “Nice to meet you,” he replied, shaking the other’s hand warmly.

“When are you going to introduce me?” a silky voice came from behind him. Woohyun turned and saw Sunggyu’s sister, leaning on the doorway, her long fingers were curling around the doorframe.

Woohyun opened his mouth to speak, but the words stopped in his throat as soon as he felt a hand sneak around his waist. He looked over. Sunggyu was suddenly next to him, staring at his sister almost threateningly. “Woohyun, this is Jieun. Noona, Woohyun,” he growled. Then he removed his hand from the waist and grabbed his hand instead. “We’re going upstairs. To, um, set him up. Bye!” he announced, pulling Woohyun up the stairs who was looking back at the two stunned people in the living room. Jieun narrowed her eyes on Woohyun and licked her red lips once again.

But within a few steps, they were up the stairs and in a bedroom. A guest bedroom, which meant it was a different room from Sunggyu. Woohyun frowned as he took off his sweatshirt and sunglasses, throwing them on the bed. He had gotten used to sleeping next to Sunggyu, and a little too easily. And he didn’t really want to be in his home alone, especially not with Jieun leering at him like that. He laid down on the bed. Maybe if he slept in the nude, he would be able to blend into the surroundings, and she wouldn’t be able to find it. _But, damn, I still smell._ Sunggyu must have sensed his inner turmoil. He sat on the bed next to Woohyun.  He placed a hand on his friend’s thigh. “And I’m right across the hall, in case you ever need anything or if you get scared,” he teased.

Woohyun sat up, feeling a little lighter and, yes, a little less scared. “As long as Dwaeji’s not here to wring my neck, I think I’m okay,” he retorted, nudging Sunggyu.

The half-demon, though, did not look so cheery. He bit his lip and avoided looking at his friend. His eyes were glued to his lap. “Hyun,” he started, closing his eyes tightly. “I may have left out something else.” He opened his eyes to look at Woohyun, and at times like these, he was really grateful that Woohyun was invisible, so that he couldn’t see the hurt in his friend’s eyes. And so Sunggyu had a little bit more confidence to confess, “My sister isn’t exactly like me. My mom had her before she turned human.”

“So shouldn’t she still be like you? She’s still half human, right?” Woohyun argued, angling his body towards Sunggyu, cocking his head.

“Turns out that the gumiho gene is dominant,” Sunggyu spoke with a forced chuckle. His eyes again drifted from Woohyun. “And she’s kind of the reason why I never bring people home and why I can see thestrals,” he mumbled, hardly audible, but Woohyun was so close to Sunggyu that he didn’t miss it.

Woohyun pulled back and began to process the new information. _She’s half gumiho, but the gene is dominant. And Sunggyu can see thestrals because he’s seen death. Jieun is responsible for that which means_ …“OH MY GOD! SHE’S GOING TO EAT ME!” he yelled, jumping up from the bed and looking for a place to hide.

“No, no,” Sunggyu denied, also getting up from the bed and wrapping his arm around the other’s shoulder, bringing back down to the bed to calm him down. “I explained it to her, so she shouldn’t.”

Woohyun struggled against the other’s hold, still trying to escape. “Shouldn’t? Shouldn’t?!” he challenged.

 “I won’t. I’m not that bad,” a low voice interrupted. They hadn’t even noticed the door opening, but there Jieun was kneeling in front of them. She tilted her head, her long hair trailing over her shoulder and falling across her stark white face. A small smirk appeared across her lips. “But I can’t guarantee that I won’t _touch_ your special friend, Gyugyu,” she said, and her fingers trailed up Woohyun’s shin and cupped his knee. She leaned forward and placed her chin on that hand. Her smile widened, glancing up at Woohyun.  “He’s cute.”

Woohyun leaned closer into Sunggyu’s chest and grabbed at his waist. “I’m scared,” he whispered.

Jieun pulled back and tapped his knee. “Good,” she said, getting up and licking her lips again.

“Noona!” The warmth left Woohyun’s side. Sunggyu was now standing in front of his sister with a spray bottle in his hand (where did that come from?) aimed right at her. Jieun raised her hand in warning, but Sunggyu didn’t heed it and began pressing the trigger, soaking his sister. Her arms flew up to protect her hair as she ran out of the room. Sunggyu sighed as he tossed the bottle into his friend’s lap. “Keep this with you,” he commanded.

Woohyun took the bottle and brought it to his chest. Tonight, this would be his new security blanket.

* * *

The next day, Woohyun could hardly wait for morning to break. He couldn’t sleep well. His room was cold (because he did decide to sleep naked to throw Jieun off), and the bottle was hard against his chest. There was now an impression of the bottle against his cheek because he refused to let it go. But now with the sun risen and orange light filtering in the room, he can finally run into Sunggyu’s room and under his covers (he was _really_ cold). He had spent a whole night alone, and he hope that was enough to show that he wasn’t afraid of the half-demon’s family (although that might be a little departure from the truth). Woohyun darted off the bed and put on some clothes, placing the spray bottle safely in the pocket of his hoodie.

“Good morning, hy-hyung?” He noticed the room was empty a half-second after he opened the door. The bed looked hardly slept in, and everything just looked too neat, like Sunggyu had barely been there. But the elder did leave something behind, a small note on the bed as if he knew Woohyun would run into his room the moment he woke up.

_Gone to pick some ingredients. I’ll be back to eat._

Woohyun pulled the hoodie closer to him. He felt colder. He slowly put the note back on the bed, feeling at a loss. Sure, Sunggyu wasn’t the warmest of people. It wasn’t like he expected the note to be littered with hearts and endearments, but this seemed like a note he would post on the front of his shop, saying that he went out for lunch. It was impersonal. _B-but the other night_ , Woohyun recalled when he came back from his parent’s house, when Sunggyu kissed him (and not the other way around). _There was something, wasn’t there?_

“Looks like he left you alone to play with me.” Woohyun’s heart leapt out of his chest. Jieun suddenly was there on the bed, reading the note. She snorted, rolled her eyes, and put the note back down. She then looked up to  Woohyun and smiled devilishly.

The wizard reached for his hoodie pocket, clutching the spray bottle. “Great.”

* * *

Playing wasn’t exactly how Woohyun would put it. They spent the day doing chores, and because Mrs. Kim’s magic left the moment she turned human, they did everything ‘the muggle way.’ But for Woohyun, it was the old fashioned way. Electricity was scarce out here, and they used it sparingly. Mrs. Kim admitted with a blush that she makes her husband help out whenever he could. He could still use magic. But he was with Sunggyu in the mountains, picking herbs and whanot. Mr. Kim was a herbologist and could easily identify and find whatever his son needed. Which meant that Woohyun was now the ‘man’ of the house, with a former gumiho and a bloodthirsty one.

But Woohyun was starting to feel more at ease with them. He got used to Jieun’s stalking and lingering stares. And Mrs. Kim, well, she wasn’t too hard to get used to. She was your typical mother, despite her demonic background. She loved her family deeply, enough to surrender her immortality for them. And now the two of them were standing together in a tub, stomping on the blankets as they were doing laundry. Woohyun even felt safe when Mrs. Kim snuck her hand around his waist to keep her balance.

Jieun had left a few moments before, and now she was just a white spec in the distance, following a man walking down the country road. Woohyun diverted his eyes and swallowed hard. As much as he wanted to see thestrals, maybe today wasn’t the day to gain that ability. Then he heard a light laughter from his side.

 “She scares you,” Mrs. Kim said, smiling up at him knowingly. Her gaze hit slightly above his head, apparently thinking Woohyun to be taller than he was.

“A little,” he admitted with a chuckle.

“Do I?”

“Nope,” Woohyun answered, giving her side a squeeze. “You remind me of my mom.”

Mrs. Kim’s gaze fell, and she sighed.  “There was a time when I was like that,” she said, nodding over to Jieun, who was now talking to the man on the road and stepping closer and closer to him. Her hand gripped his shoulder as she leaned to whisper in his ear. “Actually, I was worse,” Mrs. Kim reminisced. Woohyun could see her dull fangs peak over her lips as she spoke. The mother shook her head almost disapprovingly. “Jieunnie is tame.” It was almost like she expected more from her demon daughter.

Woohyun dropped his hand from her side and stepped out of the tub.“Okay, now you’re scaring me,” he revealed as he rolled down his pant legs.

She smiled warmly at Woohyun and also stepped out of the tub. “Thank you,” she spoke as she began to wring the blankets with her hands. “And thank you for giving my baby a reason to come home.”

Woohyun bent down to help her, watching the blanket lift up like it happened on its own. “I’m sure he would have eventually,” he offered her some comfort. He didn’t really believe in his words too much, and Mrs. Kim didn’t seem to either.

She shrugged. “Maybe, but that kid works too much,” she mumbled. Woohyun nodded. Everything Sunggyu did (whether it be school, work, or sleeping), he allowed it to consume his life, without him even knowing it. He thought that he was acting moderately, but he had no idea. And now his family had to pay the price for his ‘dedication.’ She gestured to Woohyun to stand up with her. And they stood together, gathering the blanket and walking it over to the line.

As they were hanging it up, Woohyun saw two specks in the distance. But it wasn’t Jieun and the man. He had no idea where those two went (and he didn’t want to know). However, Woohyun could recognize that lazy gait anywhere, with hands in his pockets.

“Oh, they’re home.” Mrs. Kim must have seen them too. And the two of them silently watched the men walk up to the house as they finished pinning up the laundry on the line. Sunggyu and his father had baskets tied to their backs and carrying large ones in their arms. The sun was practically set behind the mountains by the time they reached Woohyun and Mrs. Kim. Woohyun waved to them, which he realized was silly the moment he started, and put his hand back down. But it wasn’t like Sunggyu was looking anyways. His eyes were fixed on the basket in his hands, concentrating on not dropping it. Woohyun stepped out from behind the line.

“I can help you with that,” he offered the elder.

But Sunggyu dodged him and continued walking up to the house. “I’m fine,” he grumbled.

“Um,” Mr.  Kim drew Woohyun’s attention away from his son’s fleeing back. “It’s just that we have to deal with these,” he gestured to the baskets, “before they go bad. But we’ll see you for dinner.” The father then followed his son into the house. Woohyun let out a curt laugh. Mr. Kim was trying to comfort him, but for what? Because his son was being an ass? Woohyun was used to that, or at least he thought he was. The thing was that Sunggyu used to always be like that to him, and then he wasn’t. The half-demon opened up and welcomed him into his world. And now the moment he had welcomed Woohyun into his home, he locked him out. _Did I do something wrong? Did I misunderstand something?_

After a while, Woohyun realized he was outside alone and that everyone was now inside the house, including Jieun, who was now staring at him through the window like a cat. Woohyun waved again, forgetting that she couldn’t see it, but to his surprise, she waved back. He then entered the house and was about to offer to help Mrs. Kim with the dinner, but after seeing her chop off a head of a rabbit and pulling its skin from its flesh, he didn’t think helping out would be a good idea. He might throw up over everything. Mrs. Kim was truly a scary woman.

He retreated into the living room, where Jieun was sprawled out on the couch. “Hyunnie,” she called to him, feigning closeness. She patted the spot next to her on the couch. “Sit with me. There’s something I want to show you.”

Woohyun stared at her curiously, seeing her gleaming canines graze her lips. He stayed frozen in his spot.  He reached in front of his stomach, and to his dismay, he had forgotten that he’d taken off his hoodie ages ago, with the spray bottle still inside. He was now defenseless. Jieun scoffed and rolled her eyes at him. “I won’t bite. I want to show you this,” she pointed to a book in her lap.

Woohyun hesitantly walked over and sat on the very edge of the couch, with his bottom barely touching the cushion. Jieun huffed and dropped the book in her lap as she got up. “You look at it. I’m going to check on dinner,” she announced, but instead of going into the kitchen, Jieun went outside.

The wizard shook his head, not wanting to give that woman a second thought. It was better if he didn’t know. He just stared at the leather bound book in his lap. He slowly picked at the cover and opened it, closing his eyes just in case something popped out. He’d seen enough Harry Potter movies to know that not all books were safe. But then nothing happened, even with the cover wide open. Woohyun opened one eye just a crack, but as soon as he opened that one, he realized he wanted to see more. Both of his eyes were wide open, and his knees were now propped onto the couch, bringing the album closer to his face. It was full of moving photos of Sunggyu, little baby Sunggyu.

His fingertips traced the edges of the photos, watching them intently. There was a four year old Sunggyu on a swing, swinging his legs back and forth with all of his might, but still barely moving. There was one of him a Jieun. She was pinching him hard on the cheeks, and Woohyun could see the tips of Sunggyu’s tails coming out of his yellow sweatpants. But perhaps Woohyun’s favorite photo was one of his friend, shirtless, showcasing his soft baby fat. His hands were folding in front of his chest as if he was praying. Even his lips were moving as if he was talking seriously to the person holding the camera. Woohyun giggled as he watched the photo. Sunggyu hadn’t changed much since childhood.

 “What are you looking at?” His friend was now standing in front of him, still serious and unsmiling.

“You,” Woohyun answered honestly. He then finally saw an expression flash across his friend’s face, curiousity. Woohyun turned the book around and showed the album to him. “Look at that. Hyung, you were cute. What happened?” he teased.

Sunggyu pushed Woohyun over and sat down next to him. “I got handsome,” he retorted and tore the book from the other’s hands. He grimaced, his cheeks slightly reddening, and closed it. But he didn’t want Woohyun to see him flustered. He scoffed, “Like your baby pictures are any better.”

“They are,” Woohyun fought back. “I was recruited to be a model. I have the perfect face.” He drew circles with his hand around his face, but slowly dropped his hand. Sunggyu was staring at him with a pitiful expression because all he could see was the wall across from him. This was starting to become frustrating.

“I, uh, I’m sure you do,” Sunggyu stuttered as he got up. The pity disappeared from his face as it hardened once again to its cold expression. “I’m  going to check up on the food.” Woohyun let out a heavy sigh as he watched the other scurry off into the kitchen. He narrowed his eyes on his back as Sunggyu turned the corner. If only Woohyun had a wand, he wouldn’t be able to escape.

And while Woohyun was imagining sparks lighting up the other’s back like a firework display.  Jieun once again appeared at his side, sitting on the couch next to him, tracing her finger up his thigh to get his attention. Woohyun nearly jumped out of his own skin after catching sight of her, which only made her giggle in delight. She then nodded over to the kitchen while Woohyun was trying to calm down his racing heart. “You like him,” she coolly stated, her fingertips still drawing circles into his thigh.

Woohyun was almost shocked with himself as he slapped her hand away from him. He automatically looked up at her with wide eyes. But she seemed to take it well and was just awaiting his response with a raised brow. “Yea, he’s a good friend,” Woohyun replied nonchalantly, crossing his arms over his chest. There was no way he was going to talk about his relationship with Sunggyu, especially not to his sister. After all, he wasn’t too sure about what it was. Not now.

Jieun leaned in closer, the tip of her nose grazing his shoulder as she breathed in deeply. “You _like_ him. I can smell it,” she said mischievously as she pulled away. She smiled knowingly at him.

Woohyun however was more concerned with the stench he was emitting. He lifted up his arms and sniffed his pits. Sunggyu wouldn’t be able to smell anything, would he? “Gyu-hyung says that I smell sweaty,” he argued, bringing the collar of his shirt up to his nose and sniffing that too.

Jieun broke out to a laughter that sounded similar to a hyena. She started slapping the couch in her fit. “Oh my God! That kid would think it was just sweat,” she said in exasperation.

“What do I smell like?” the wizard asked desperately. Maybe he could hide it.

Jieun eyes widened for a second in surprise. She then hit the other in the chest as she whispered, “You know…that thing animals secrete when they want to…” But it soon  became evident to her that the other had no idea what she was talking about. She ran her hand through her hair in frustration. “Aish! You two deserve each other.” She got up from the couch and sauntered outside once again.

“Wait, does he smell sweaty too?” Woohyun called out to her, and she just waved her hand at him before slamming the door behind her. Woohyun pouted, sitting there alone on the couch. He had too many unanswered questions, and everyone was avoiding him, refusing to give him any answer. He felt the anger he had earlier boiling up in him again. He closed his eyes and took in a deep breath. He couldn’t melt down, not here. He just needed to talk, just one small conversation with Sunggyu.

“Woohyunnie, dinner time,” Mrs. Kim called out from the kitchen. And here was his opportunity.

Woohyun made sure to sit by his hyung at the table before his mother could take the spot next to him (his parents had been sitting by him at the table, obviously trying to squeeze out every moment with their son). Mrs. Kim looked a little disappointed as she took a seat next to her husband. And Sunggyu, he looked nervous, especially when Woohyun leaned over and sniffed him.

“What are you doing?” the half-demon demanded to know.

Woohyun grinned. “Hyung, you smell sweaty too,” and that gladdened Woohyun’s heart a little.

Sunggyu hung his head, playing with the raw meat on his plate. “I was working all day,” he grumbled and stuffed his mouth with the bloody flesh.

Woohyun almost gagged, watching him eat. “Woohyunnie worked today too. He helped me around the house,” Mrs. Kim defended the wizard.

Mr. Kim looked in the direction of Woohyun but ended up looking just past his shoulder. “Oh is that so? You didn’t have to.”

“But I wanted to,” Woohyun insisted. “I’m used to helping out with chores. I do it all the time at home.”

“Really?” Mrs. Kim’s eyes glistened. “If only my real son was more like you. Even when he lived here, he rarely helped out.” She glanced at her son out of the corner of her eye. She was obviously trying to provoke him, but he wasn’t biting. The half-demon was only chewing on his meat. His dish almost clear.

Woohyun looked around the table and realized that someone was still missing. “Where’s Jieun-noona?” he asked.

“She said that she was going to eat out tonight,” Mr. Kim coolly said, but it sent chills down Woohyun’s spine how okay with it he was. But then again, he did marry one.

“Thanks for dinner,” Sunggyu announced, still loudly chewing on his food as he left the room.

“Wait, hyung! Where are you going?” Woohyun shouted out to him.

“I have to work.”

Gone. Alone with Sunggyu’s parents who just shook their heads at their son’s conduct. Woohyun angrily stuffed rice into his mouth and chewed loudly as well, working out all of his frustrations with every bite. Sunggyu couldn’t keep running away forever.

* * *

Sunggyu had spent the rest of the night in his makeshift lab in the basement. And it became evident the next morning that he had spent the night there as well. Woohyun scanned the elder’s bedroom. It was the exact same as it was the morning before. He walked into the bedroom and flopped onto the bed. He then flailed his limbs, throwing a miniature tantrum. Being ignored like this was bringing up bad memories and old wounds he thought had healed. It was all so similar: a friend who acted so close to him only to suddenly turn cold on him when he became too unbearable. But this was different from Kibum. He and Kibum were only ever friends, and they never…”ARGH!” Woohyun whined as he renewed his tantrum.

“Ahem.” Woohyun stopped and craned his neck to look behind him. It was Jieun again with her usual smirk, and maybe a drop of dried blood on her lips. She brushed it away as she spoke, “I’ve got direct orders from my brother to take you somewhere.”

“Where?” Woohyun barked with a gruff voice. _Off a cliff? A long walk on a short pier? Into the mountains so that you can make a meal of me?_

“You,” she wagged a finger playfully at him. “You are getting a wand today.”

Woohyun flew off of the bed and ran out of the room. “Hold on. Let me get my shoes!”

* * *

A half an hour later, the two of them were walking into the downtown area of the town, no larger than a few blocks. Jieun had warned him that they might now find a wand for him today, given the small stock at an even tinier shop, but it didn’t hurt to try. “Here we are,” she said, pointing at a sign on the side of a small, red brick building. It read: Miss Gong’s Wand Shop.

And when they entered the building, a bell rang, announcing their arrival. Woohyun was gazing around the shop, his jaw hanging wide open. The store was filled with endless rows and columns of cubbies, each containing various colored boxes. A jolt of electricity flew from the tips of his fingers and traveled up his body. Wands, he was surrounded by them. He could almost feel their magical aura pulsating throughout the room.

“How may I help you?” an elderly voice echoed through the small room. It was an old woman with tightly curled, black hair. Her floral patterned dress and apron clashed greatly against the dark stain of the shelves behind her. She looked at Jieun and Woohyun curiously. “Jieunnie, what brings you here? Is everything okay with your wand? Did you break it again?” she asked in a tone that sounded like she was prepared to lecture the demon if she had.

Jieun shook her head and rest her hand on Woohyun’s shoulder. “Nope, just getting a wand for this kid,” her fingers drummed on his shoulder for emphasis. “He’s just a little behind.”

Miss Gong placed her hands in her apron as she looked Woohyun up and down. She cocked an eyebrow. “Just how old are you, young…man?”

“24,” Woohyun coughed out, completely embarrassed.

Miss Gong just shrugged. “Well, there’s a first time for everything. Finding a wand for a 24 year-old ghost,” she mumbled as she climbed a ladder and scanned the cubbies.

“I’m not a ghost. I’m just invisible. I’m still alive,” Woohyun argued, sick and tired of people treating him like the undead.

“I never said you weren’t,” the old woman retorted. She pulled a wand from its square hole. Miss Gong climbed down the ladder and handed the box over to Woohyun. “Try this. It’s an 11 inch with unicorn hair as its core.”

Woohyun slowly opened the box as if he was opening a newly discovered crypt, with the upmost reverence and care. Once the lid was removed, he ran his finger down the smooth length of the wand. There wasn’t much special about it. But I’ll make it special because it’s mine. He plucked the wand from the box. He looked up at Miss Gong, who urged him to give it a strong flick. Woohyun took in a deep breath and swiped the wand across the air. A strong gust followed, blowing his hair and Jieun’s (but Miss Gong’s hair hardly moved, apparently laden with product). Woohyun looked at the old woman with a broad grin. But she just shook her head and took the wand away from the wizard. “No, no. This won’t do.”

And the 20 wands after that didn’t work either, or so Miss Gong said. He was starting to get irritated with the woman because he swore that he could feel something special with that last wand he had in his hand. After he gave that one a flick, several boxes started to fly about the room. However, Jieun was shaking her head as well. “Like I said, we might not find it today,” she offered some condolence. “I told Gyugyu that it was a long shot for you to find your first wand here. Come on, Hyunnie. Let’s go home.”

“Okay,” he relented as he gave the shop one last look.

Miss Gong however froze in her spot, allowing the box that she was trying to return to its cubby to fall onto the ground. “Wait. This is your first wand?” she asked urgently.

Jieun nodded. “Yes, that’s what I meant by saying that he was a little behind.”

“You fox!” Miss Gong scolded Jieun. “Why didn’t you just tell me? This changes everything because…because I might have something,” she spoke slowly, her thoughts traveling faster than her lips. “Hold on for one moment.” She disappeared into the back room.

Jieun groaned and leaned against the shelves. She was all prepared to leave, and Woohyun had noticed her scouting out the men who were passing by the shop’s window.  He shot her an apologetic glance, but she just shrugged him off.

“This,” Miss Gong called out as she walked out into the main room. “This wand was given to me by a friend who runs his own wand store in a town three hours from here.” Woohyun’s eyes widened, and his jaw slackened. _It couldn’t be_. “He had made this 13 years ago. But he had experimented with it.” She removed the lid from the box and gingerly touched it. “You see, most cores are made from hairs or feathers of animals with magical properties, but this one doesn’t.” She removed it from the box, revealing it’s midnight blue color. “One night, a star fell into my friend’s backyard, and he made this wand with the dust from that star. He thought that stars granted wishes, so they had to have _some_ magic in them.” She twisted the wand around as she spoke, allowing Woohyun to see the carvings on it. At the handle of it was a starburst, and the tail of the star traveled down the wand’s length, making it look like a shooting star. “But it laid unsold in his shop for 13 years. And everytime a young witch or wizard would try it, nothing would happen. Literally nothing. And you saw how wands always give responses, even when it’s not held by its owner. So this wand was either stubborn or useless. And my friend was unwilling to throw it away, still holding it close to his heart. And just last week, this wand entered my shop.” Miss Gong paused and looked at Woohyun; she managed to meet his eyes, which unnerved him. “And here we have a wizard, buying a wand 12 years after he should have.” She walked up to the wizard and gently placed the blue wand into his hand.

He felt it. The warm power surging through the wand and coursing through his veins. The starburst at the end of the handle glowed slightly, and a small whirlwind whipped up around him. “Woah,” Jieun muttered.

“I think the wand finally found its owner,” Miss Gong declared with a smile.

Woohyun smiled brightly looking about him, only to see the elderly woman and a distracted gumiho. His grin faltered. He glanced down at the wand in his hands and clutched it tightly. Things never turned out the way he imagined them.

* * *

Woohyun couldn’t get back to Sunggyu’s house fast enough. He barely greeted his parents as he made his way to the basement, but once he reached the door, he finally slowed down, preparing to ambush the elder. The wizard slowly stalked down the stairs, watching Sunggyu stir a brown liquid in a cauldron, with a hand deep in his hair. He was completely focused, which was perfect for what Woohyun wanted to do.

“Pantaloonies Poopicus!” Woohyun shouted at the top of his lungs, aiming his wand right in between Sunggyu’s eyes.

“Shit!” the half-demon cursed, spilling the cauldron over in his flinching, and his tails quickly appeared around him. He glared at Woohyun who was chuckling and obviously trying to show off his wand. Sunggyu didn’t notice and huffed, “Woohyun, go away. I’m busy.”

“You’re always busy now!” Woohyun snapped. He couldn’t hold it in any longer, and now he was conveniently between Sunggyu and his only exit. And this time he had a wand (he didn’t know how to use it just yet, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t try). Sunggyu shook his head as he picked the cauldron back up and attempted to mop up the brown mess. “You’re avoiding me.”

“No, I’m not,” Sunggyu retorted, not even sparing the other a glance.

“Bullshit,” Woohyun called him out. “Stop lying to me and protecting me like I'm a f***ing child! You _are_ avoiding me. I’ve seen you for a total of five minutes these days.” He tore the cloth away from Sunggyu and threw it across the room, which finally made Sunggyu look at him. “I know you. You’re hiding something from me.” Sunggyu opened his mouth, but Woohyun cut him off. “And don’t even try to deny it. Just tell me, hyung. Just f***ing tell me!”

Sunggyu cocked an eyebrow. “Are you sure you want to know?” he challenged.

“Yes!” Woohyun answered desperately.

Sunggyu looked down and plucked a brown pod from a small bowl. “It’s this seed. This f***ing Castor bean,” he cursed as he threw it back down into the bowl.

“What about it?”

Sunggyu’s eyes meet with Woohyun’s. They must have memorized where they were. And Woohyun didn’t like what he was seeing in them. It was that look again: of guilt and pity. But this time, desperation form a large part of it. “It could kill you,” Sunggyu whispered.

“O-oh.”

Sunggyu dug his fists into his temples as he rest his elbows on the table. “If I put in the wrong amount, or prepare it the wrong way, even slightly, you’ll die. You see what I'm dealing with? I could _kill_ you. And I can't...I just...” He let out a loud groan as he hid his head deeper into his chest. “And guess what ingredient it’s supposed to nullify in the antidote.”

Woohyun was slowly starting to realize the dilemma. “The ingredient that I just randomly threw in,” he guessed. Sunggyu pointed at Woohyun with his head still down. Woohyun then slumped unto a stool at the table. “F**k.” He then glanced down at his friend who was now listlessly sprawled out onto the surface of the table. Woohyun reached over, resting his hand on his forearm. The half-demon’s pointed eyes darted up to his face. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

Sunggyu pulled himself back up, slouching into his chair. “Because there was nothing you can do,” he reasoned. “I got you into this mess, and it’s my responsibility to fix it.”

“Idiot,” Woohyun muttered, causing Sunggyu to snap his head up. “ _I_ did this. _I_ threw in the shit. _I_ drank the potion. _I_ did this to _myself_.” Woohyun squeezed Sunggyu’s forearm. “And you need to stop blaming yourself for shit that I did.”

“But-“ Sunggyu began to argue.

“Fine,” Woohyun gave in a little. “ _We_ did this. We did this to ourselves. So let’s solve this _together_. Just like we started it. You don't have to do this alone.” His hand traveled down his arm and gripped the other's hand. "I trust you."

Sunggyu nodded, his face warming a little “Okay, let's do this.”

* * *

While they were making the antidote, Sunggyu didn’t even touch the Castor Beans. When he was handling them before, his hands were trembling, causing him to fumble every attempt to handle them correctly. He couldn’t deal with the pressure, knowing that Woohyun’s fate depended on that damn brown pod; it had kept him up for nights. He couldn’t even remember what sleep felt like. But Woohyun, on the other hand, was oddly calm while handling it. Sunggyu guessed that it might’ve been his ignorance that made him so relaxed. He didn’t know how the bean could slowly shut off necessary productions in his body, making him suffer a slow and painful death. Not only that, but Woohyun also seemed to have some luck when it came to potions, always accidentally doing the right thing. Sunggyu hoped that this time it wouldn’t be an exception.

And now, Sunggyu was stirring the pot as Woohyun was carefully putting the final ingredient into the concoction. It was slowly turning from brown to a thick, black liquid. The half-demon frowned in concentration as he struggled to stir the viscous liquid. “You know, I’ve been thinking.” he began. “We do have another option.”

Woohyun sat down across from the elder and put his elbows onto the table. “What?”

“We could let you stay like this and live here. Well, not here with my parents,” Sunggyu recanted with a slight laugh. “But around here. We could get a house. No one would ever find you. You’d be safe. And I could set up shop here easily. And you could help me out just like you’ve been doing. That doesn’t sound bad, does it?” he proposed, shyly looking at Woohyun, afraid of the other’s rejection. “Just you and me?”

Woohyun grinned. It didn’t sound like a bad idea; in fact, it sounded like a dream. He could easily see the two of them spending their days and nights at each other’s sides, occasionally watching the sun set or rise over the mountain peaks, his head in the other’s lap. But the thing about dreams is that they’re not based in reality. There were some things that Woohyun couldn’t give up, even for this fantasy.  “I’d still be invisible. I’d still have to hide,” Woohyun challenged, now imagining himself being eternally relegated into the back room of ‘their future’ shop. “And I have a life back home! I’d never be able to help out at my parents’ shop again. Or see my friends. Hyung, I have _a lot_ of friends,” he argued with a short chuckle. “I just can’t leave everything behind.” _Besides, I want people to see me again. I want_ you _to see me._ "I hate being a ghost."

“So we’re actually doing this,” Sunggyu spoke, glaring down at the cauldron in front of him. He sighed and poured a glass of the heavy liquid into a cup, grimacing as he did so. After filling it up, he handed it over to the other.

Woohyun took the cup and swirled it around, watching the potion cling to the sides of the cup. “I guess we are,” he replied. He brought the cup up to his lips. He could feel the cold ceramic brush against his lips. He then lowered the cup just a little. “Gyu-hyung…I have something to tell you.”

Sunggyu brought the cup up to his lips again. “Tell me after you drink this,” he urged.

“But what if?”

“After okay?” Sunggyu’s eyes were blazing. “You’re going to make it, so tell me later.”

Woohyun studied the half-demon for a moment. The other was just as nervous as he was. He was confident only in his words. Sunggyu thought that things were probably better left unsaid, if Woohyun didn’t make it. But if Woohyun felt like he was dying, he would say what he wanted with his dying breath anyway. It would be more romantic that way, or so he thought. And so he agreed, “Okay.”

And then he downed the potion in one shot.

It thick black liquid coated his entire throat, making it hard for him to breath. And it traveled so slowly that he didn’t think there was a chance of his passageways opening soon. He coughed violently, trying to make room to breathe. Sunggyu immediately rushed to his side, patting his back. Woohyun tried to stand up from the barstool but ended up collapsing onto the floor. Sunggyu fell down with him and was ready to jab his fingers down the other’s throat to induce vomiting, but then Woohyun pushed his hand away. “I’m okay,” he wheezed.

“Are you sure?”

Woohyun nodded, feeling air rush into his lungs again. “So…” he took in a deep breath. “What now?”

“We wait,” Sunggyu admitted pulling back from the other. “It’ll take two hours for the antidote to take effect. So…what now?” he asked. And Woohyun was slightly taken aback. He was so used to Sunggyu dictating their time, and without his consent mostly, so to finally be asked…a smile spread across his face.

“Can we…can we just act normal? And not like we're waiting for something bad to happen. It's making me nervous,” Wooohyun ended still smiling but the corner of his mouth was trembling nervously, he could feel it and was grateful that the other couldn't see it.

Sunggyu cocked his head. “Okay…how? What do we do?” he asked, crossing his legs over each other/

Woohyun shrugged and inched closer to the other. "Just talk to me, okay? That's it."

The half-demon nodded along to the other’s request. “Okay,” he drawled out as he thought for a few moments. “Woohyunnie, can I see your wand?”

“I’D THOUGHT YOU’D NEVER ASK!”

After detailing every minute detail about his trip to the shop with Jieun, their conversation took a slight turn. They began to talk about things that Woohyun would do with the wand, if he would attend school, what  would Sunggyu do in the coming year, and what they would do together. They were planning their futures, and a more realistic one than Sunggyu’s country get-away scheme. And with every single thing they planned, Sunggyu desperately wished that the potion would work, that Woohyun would live because without him, that brilliant and happy future wouldn’t exist.

And something about this moment, the intimacy of it, or the proximity of their positions, reminded Woohyun of when they were in the lab at Hogwarts. And watching Sunggyu laugh hysterically at the prospect of his friend Sungyeol teaching Woohyun, seeing him happier than he’d been in days, made the younger want to lean in and give him reason to smile even wider.

“Yea and maybe he’ll…” Woohyun tried to joke, but he didn’t finish that thought. His stomach rumbled loudly, consuming his words in its loud noise. A sharp pain was shooting in his gut, and it suddenly felt like his insides were on fire. The pain made him feel faint. He fell onto Sunggyu, resting his forehead on the other’s shoulder.

“Hyun? What’s wrong?” Sunggyu blurted out, terrified of the answer.

“I feel like I’m dying,” the other whined in a strained voice.

“F***ing shit! No! Woohyun, you can’t!” he yelled, grabbing his friend’s shoulders and peeling him away. He gently shook Woohyun. His heart racing a mile a minute. “Hyun! Can you hear me?” All he got was moans in response. At least he’s conscious. Sunggyu carefully searched the air, looking for Woohyun’s forehead to see if he was feverish. And that’s when he saw it. A floating peach speck just below his hand.  Sunggyu let go of Woohyun in disbelief, who ended up falling into the elder’s lap. “Crap!” he cursed, pulling Woohyun back up. And then he was met with a small pointed nose. The color was spreading in all directions. Quickly, a mouth also appeared, and eyes, screwed shut. Eyebrows furrowed in pain came next, followed closely by sweat-soaked hair. Flushed cheeks came into view. And with each part of Woohyun reappearing, gladdened Sunggyu but also made his heart ache. He was in pain, and it was visible now.

A trembling hand gripped Sunggyu’s shoulder. “H-hyung,” Woohyun stammered through his parched lips.

“Hm?” was the most intelligent response the half-demon could manage.

“W-where’s,” he croaked. “Where’s your bathroom?”

“Huh?”

“I gotta shit,” Woohyun gasped, opening his eyes and seeing Sunggyu staring down at him in disbelief. He was staring straight at him, his eyes right into his own. Woohyun slowly looked down and saw a had gripping Sunggyu’s shoulder. It was his hand. He could see his hand! “HYUNG!” he exclaimed and was about to say more, but his intestines rumbled angrily. “Hyung! Bathroom!”

“Over there!” Sunggyu pointed to a door on the side. After watching Woohyun sprint into the bathroom, Sunggyu collapsed onto the floor and began laughing in relief.

He had done it. No…they had done it. Not only did they discover the perfect invisibility potion, but accidentally made an edible one. They even made an antidote too, which save for a few side effects (which he could hear going on in the bathroom right now), was safe as well. They were going to go down in history…but more importantly, Woohyun would have a future.

Ten minutes later, Woohyun stumbled out of the bathroom and collapsed onto the floor next to Sunggyu, breathing heavily. The half-demon turned on his side to study Woohyun again. He hadn’t been lying earlier. Woohyun was handsome. His profile was sharp and angular, but his frame was smaller than her remembered. Somehow, as a floating mass of clothes, he seemed larger, but now seeing his limbs, Woohyun’s true size was revealed. While Sunggyu was watching the other’s feverish sweat collect and run down the features which had been gone for so long, Woohyun turned his head and stared back at Sunggyu, who flinched and became flustered. Woohyun chuckled realizing that the other had been staring at him. Woohyun’s dark eyes glistening as if looking into a light and a satisfied grin appearing on his face as he watched Sunggyu watching him.

The half-demon carefully studied the other’s face, seeing what he had wanted to see for a while, proof. Before, Sunggyu had doubted whether Woohyun truly liked him, or if he was just a replacement for everyone important in his life or an outlet for his affections, but now after gazing upon Woohyun’s face, all of his doubts were chased away. The way Woohyun was looking at him just seemed real and genuine (it probably resembled the way _he_ looked at Woohyun) and after seeing it Sunggyu began to believe it, in Woohyun’s feelings for him.

 “So what did you have to tell me?” Sunggyu asked, finally filling the air with something more than Woohyun’s pants.

Woohyun wiggled closer to Sunggyu until their shoulders touched. His eyes turned into smiling crescents and his lips twitched upwards into a cheek smile. “Gyu-hyung…do you love me?” he ended with his usual chuckle.

And Sunggyu laughed. Woohyun always liked asking questions. He should have expected it to be like this. “I like you,” Sunggyu replied after his laughter abated.

The smile didn’t even lessen on Woohyun’s face at that. And in fact, it grew larger. Just to hear the other admit what he thought was true but had been doubting the last couple of days, it warmed his heart. “I like you too,” Woohyun replied. He then rolled closer and gave Sunggyu a light kiss on his lips. “I like you a lot.”

When Woohyun began to pull away, he was stopped, and Sunggyu pulled Woohyun into his chest, burying his face in the crook of the other’s neck. Clinging onto him tightly, Woohyun felt the half-demon sigh heavily into his collar bones. “I’m glad that you’re okay,” he admitted, tightening his hold onto Woohyun as if he were about to disappear into thin air…again.

The wizard chuckled and snuggled closer to the other. “I’m glad too.”

* * *

The next day, they returned back into town. Woohyun went back to his home, and Sunggyu to his. And the apothecary felt a little emptier without Woohyun trailing Sunggyu wherever he went. Even Hedwig hadn't returned yet from where he had sent her. Sunggyu shook his head. Owllie, her name is Owllie, he reminded himself. The half-demon sighed as he placed his messenger bag onto the table. The other had promised to visit as soon as he could. But ‘as soon as’ wasn’t a time, or at least not one Sunggyu could set it watch by. And he wasn’t liking this sudden lonely feeling enveloping him.

“Kyakyakyakyakya!”

Or maybe Sunggyu wasn’t as alone as he thought. He walked upstairs and entered his uncle’s bedroom, only to see the headmaster happily chatting with the House Elf, who was beaming at the return of his true master. “Samchon?” Sunggyu broke into the conversation.

“Oh, Gyu-goon! You’re back!” Professor Jang jumped up from the bed and looked about. He frowned, not finding what he was searching for. “Where’s Nam-goon?”

“Home,” Sunggyu answered curtly.

“Aw shucks! I wanted to talk to him about something,” the headmaster complained, looking completely dejected. Even Dwaeji looked sad too, adopting his master’s posture.

Sunggyu sighed, not having the patience or the energy to deal with his uncle right now. “Are you going to talk to him about going to school?" he asked, and his uncle nodded emphatically, causing his pink beard to sway back and forth. "You can probably catch him tomorrow, and I’m going to bed,” he finished by tapping on the doorframe.

"Wait! Gyu-goon! I wanted to talk to you too," the old man's voice quivered as he begged the younger to stay.

"What?" Sunggyu turned around and spoke in an annoyed tone.

"How's it going?" Professor Jang asked melodically, twirling his beard innocently.

Sunggyu groaned, his lack of sleeping catching up to him and threatening to overtake him right then. " _I'm_ going to bed."

"Wait! Wait! Just one question," the headmaster requested, putting one finger into the air. "Just one more question, and I'll stop bothering you." Sunggyu whined and faced his uncle once again, resting his forehead on the doorway, pouting severely at the other, which only made Professor Jang giggle in delight. He walked over to Sunggyu, took his hand, lead him to the bed, and forced him to sit down next to him. And the half-demon did not like the glint in the headmaster's eyes one bit. "What...do you want?" he asked dramatically as if it was the most important question in the world.

"Sleep," Sunggyu curtly answered. "Good night," he bid the other, trying to get up from the bed, but his uncle forced him back down. The glint in his eyes were gone, replaced with stony seriousness. "Fine," the nephew yielded. He closed his eyes and thought for a few seconds. The headmaster wasn't going to let him go unless he concocted a good response, told him the truth. And so now Sunggyu was searching his heart for the answer. "I want...to be happy," he answered opening up his eyes and staring at an oddly still Professor Jang. The elder was urging him on to continue with his silence, and so Sunggyu did. He puffed up his cheeks before exhaling another confession. "I guess that I didn't realize that I was unhappy to begin with, but now that I've tasted it again...I want more." He lied down onto his uncle's pillows. "And I want Woohyun to be happy too because Lord knows I'm not going to be happy unless he is. He wouldn't let me," he dissolved into a slight chuckle. "And my parents, Noona, Sungyeol, and even you, Samchon. I just want everybody to be happy, and I want to make them happy. Because...because I had no idea how much I was hurting them before by cloistering myself up. I had no idea they cared." He hid his embarrassed face behind his hands, groaning.

"Of course, we care, Gyu. We love you," the headmaster comforted the other, resting a warm hand on his thigh.

"Yea, I guess I love you too," Sunggyu grumbled through his hands and rolled onto his side. He felt uncomfortable bearing himself this much in front of his uncle, whom he barely knew, but it wasn't like Sunggyu even allowed them to become close. _Professor must be besides himself right now._

"Ding, dong, ding!" the headmaster sang out, slapping Sunggyu's thigh with every note. The half-demon shot up. This wasn't the reaction he was expecting. "Congratulations! You passed!"

Sunggyu cocked his head. "Passed what?"

"The interview, silly," Professor Jang teased, slapping his nephew once again in the thigh. Sunggyu recoiled and glared at him. "You're now the Potions' Master at Hogwarts!"

"W-wait...but...what? How?" the other stumbled through his words, completely dumbfounded. "D-did you plan all of this?"

The headmaster opened up his mouth impossibly wide and roared in laughter. "No, no, no," he denied. "I can just spot teaching moments from a mile away, and you," he poked his nephew in the cheek and let out a squeal. "Just learned a valuable lesson." And this time, Sunggyu urged the other to continue with his silence. "You were so focused on standing out in your field, but, Gyu, everyone knows that you're good with potions since you were a teenager. _Everyone_. You didn't need the Philosopher's Stone to prove yourself. You already did that when you made the Wolfsbane potion for Yeollie. But a teacher, they're not just scholars. They're leaders and role models. You can't just care about the subject, but you also have to care about the people you're teaching it to, especially with children. They're very impressionable, and I don't want them to learn bad things. But _happiness_ ," Professor Jang said with a brilliant smile. "That's a dream that I can support. That's a dream that the children can pursue."

The professor then got up from his bed and shook his nephew's hand. "So congratulations, Professor Kim. I'm looking forward to working with you," he said warmly and then walked out of the bedroom door.

And Sunggyu was ecstatic, completely excited. He finally achieved the job he'd been working towards for awhile, and not only that but he was going to work alongside his best friend and he could torture the crap out of Woohyun (if he agreed to be a student). It was going to be great...until he realized that his boss was his uncle.

* * *

 

Woohyun straightened out his new, black robes and adjusted his round glasses on the bridge of his nose. Today was the day he'd been waiting for since he was eleven. He had already sailed across the lake with his fellow first years (he was the tallest in the class for the first time in his life), riding up to the castle lit up by candlelight against the dark blue sky. And now he was waiting in line to be sorted. He could hardly contain his excitement as he was bouncing up and doing, drawing perturbed glances from his fellow classmates because not only was he significantly older than them, but he was also acting significantly younger than them as well. But he didn't care one bit because today he'd become an official Hogwarts' student.

He had worked out an arrangement with Professor Jang. He was in a special accelerated program that should allow him to finish the 7 year-program in just a few years. And with the knowledge that he already had, the headmaster reckoned he could take 3rd year classes already. But even 3rd years need a house to sleep in, and he was going to be a Gryffindor. He could feel it in his bones. _Although Dad did say our whole family had been Slytherins_...his heart sank at that thought. _If I'm Slytherin, I'm going to..._

"Nam Woohyun," a light but authoritative voice echoed throughout the Great Hall. Woohyun looked up to see an elderly woman with a severe expression and a tight grey bun holding up the sorting hat. "I believe it's your turn," she said with a slight smirk. 

Woohyun gulped as he slowly walked up the steps to the dingy stool in the middle of the hall. He quickly glanced at the head table, where Sungyeol, Sunggyu, Professor Jang, and Hoya were all sitting in a row. Each of them were giving their own forms of silent encouragement to him (except for Sungyeol, who was showing off his Slytherin pin and pointing at Woohyun as if he were the next to join). That did little to calm his nerves. It only seemed to add to them, noticing that all eyes in the hall were now on a 24 year-old first year, who may or may not have drawn a lightening bolt scar on his forehead underneath his bangs (he thought that it would bring him luck). He almost missed the stool as he sat down, and he chuckled nervously as the soft leather enveloped his head.

"Ah! Mr. Nam! I've been waiting for you," he heard a soft voice echo through his head. "Worried about being sorted into Slytherin, eh?"

_Wait...can he read my thoughts? What if I..._

"Ew! Ew! EW!" the hat's voice retched inside his mind. "I don't want to see that. Stop thinking about that. Just stop!"

 _Sorry_ , Woohyun bowed his head in apology.

"Maybe you are Slytherin material. You sure aren't wise enough to be in Ravenclaw, that's for sure. Or maybe Hufflepuff is more of your speed."

_Please, please, Mr. Sorting Hat. You know what I want. I'm a Gryffindor. I can feel it. I know it!_

"Hmmm...do you really think that you can be a GRYFFINDOR!"

 _Yes, yes! Hey, wait a second_. Woohyun was fairly certain that the last part wasn't echoing through his mind, but through the silent hall instead. Woohyun slowly opened his eyes, which he didn't even realize that he had closed. The grey-haired woman removed the hat from Woohyun's head. "Congratulations, Mr. Nam. Now go join your other classmates at the table," she nodded towards the long table decorated in red and gold.

Woohyun shot up from the barstool, knocking it over. He turned towards the head table, looking straight at Sunggyu. “Hyung! Hyung! Did you see that? This is the greatest day of my life!” he cheered, throwing his hands up into the air. He later had to be escorted to his house table by the old woman, who reprimanded him for excessive celebration.

Sunggyu, on the other hand, hid his face behind his black robes. It was bad enough being the new professor and having to build a reputation and authority for the children, but having Nam Woohyun unknowingly thwart his every attempt at professionalism, that was worse. He then felt an elbow jab into his side. He looked over to the headmaster, who had been waving and smiling proudly at Woohyun, successfully diverting the attention away from Sunggyu. “You know, we have a strict no-dating policy between the professors and students,” he spoke through his smiling teeth to his nephew.

“B-but," Sunggyu stuttered. He hadn't really thought about that. He had assumed that their relationship had to be a secret, at least for a while. But he didn't even consider that they couldn't have one at all. He then looked down at his lap and sighed, "I mean, that makes sense, Samchon. We’ll just put things on hold…for…seven years. It’s not a very long time,” he ended with a sad laugh. Even though Woohyun was in the accelerated program, Sunggyu wasn't betting on hims finishing school quite so fast. _Woohyun has been dying to come here for most of his life. And he'll stay here for as long as he can_.

“Getting older is a funny thing," the headmaster suddenly changed the subject, stroking his beard. "Your hearing goes and the vision gets blurry and your mind is not as sharp as it once was. You tend not to notice as much as you should." He then looked over and winked at the half-demon. "So if I don’t notice it…Poof! It disappears like it never happened.”

Sunggyu smiled brightly. He then scanned the tables, searching until his eyes fell onto the new Gryffindor chatting happily with his new housemates. Woohyun seemed to fit right in, like he was always meant to be there. To be here, with him too.

“Poof.”

* * *

 

“You are here to learn the subtle science and exact art of potion-making,” Sunggyu began, stalking in front of the classroom and carefully watching the fresh batch of first years as if they were his prey. He spoke in barely more than a whisper, but they caught every word — Sunggyu seemed to the gift of keeping a class silent without effort. “As there is little foolish wand-waving here, many of you will hardly believe this is magic. I don’t expect you will really understand the beauty of the softly simmering cauldron with its shimmering fumes, the delicate power of liquids that creep through human veins, bewitching the mind, ensnaring the senses… I can teach you how to bottle fame, brew glory, even stopper death — if you aren’t as big a bunch of dunderheads I usually have to teach.” He walked down the aisles of the dungeon classroom as he spoke. But then he suddenly stopped and retreated his steps, aligning himself with a curious student, far too old to be a first year. He smirked looking at the student like he was fresh meat. "Well, what do we have here? How much did you get held back kid?" the Potions' Master teased and earned a wave of snickers from the other first years.

Woohyun looked up at him blankly. "Hy-" he began, but then he covered it up with a cough, remembering the lecture Sunggyu had given him the night before. _We don't know each other._ "Um, Professor! Hasn't the headmaster told you about my situation?" he asked, trying to do his best acting.

Sunggyu nodded arrogantly. "He has, _Mr. Nam_ ," Woohyun didn't like the way the elder said that at all. "And even though you're a first year like everyone else, I'm expecting more from you," the professor warned as he quickly turned his back and walked back up the aisle.

"Don't worry! I can do it!" Woohyun shouted back at him defiantly, making Sunggyu grin a little, but then the elder coughed, hiding his smile.

Sunggyu then began to lecture about the book, materials, and lab safety. And as he was about to write the rules of his lab on the board, he felt something soft hit the back of his head. He looked down to see a crumpled up piece of parchment on the floor. Sunggyu bent down, picked it up, and showed it to the class. All he had to do was glare at the class, and all of the first years immediately pointed to Woohyun, who was now calling them traitors underneath his breath. "10 points from Gryffindor," Sunggyu announced, garnering groans and whines from half the class (and mostly Woohyun). The professor then crossed his arms and stared directly at Woohyun. "And Mr. Nam, see me after class."

And Woohyun giggled. Although he had gotten in trouble and lost points for his house (and possibly respect from his classmates), Woohyun didn't miss the glint in Sunggyu's eyes when he said to meet him later. Maybe I'll have to get in trouble more often.

* * *

 

"Aish!" Sungyeol cursed, watching the potions' class from the hallway. "Those two are so obvious. They're going to get found out soon," he shook his head as he walked away from the classroom door. "And where is my damn cat?!"

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, according to my sources, Pobu Hwasang and the Holy mother had 8 daughters, which became the first mudang or shamans. And Gangrim Doryung is the leader of the grim reapers and even captured the god of death himself. So they're not completely random names.
> 
> And if any of that is wrong, someone change the wikipedia page.
> 
> Also, quotes from Dumbledore as chapter titles. And yes the last speech is Snape's. 
> 
> Sorry if this was anticlimactic.


End file.
